3rd · prof miimu airaksinen, vtt, finland prof s mohamed, griffiths university, australia prof...
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3rd
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT
CONFERENCE
Edited by
Dr Fidelis A Emuze
ISBN: 978-1-920176-99-0
Published by:
Department of Construction Management
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
PO Box 77000
Port Elizabeth
6031, South Africa
© Authors of papers in this publication have the copyright for the papers.
Correspondence:
All correspondence pertaining to the 3rd
CM Conference should be sent to:
Dr Fidelis A. Emuze
Department of Built Environment
Central University of Technology, Free State
Private Bag X20539
Bloemfontein
9300, South Africa
Email: [email protected]
30 November – 2 December 2014
Protea Marine Hotel, Port Elizabeth, South Africa
iii
FOREWORD
The Organising Committee of the 3rd
Construction Management Conference welcome
you to Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
The Conference provides an international forum for researchers and practitioners from
to address fundamental problems and constraints that affect the Architecture,
Engineering, and Construction (AEC) sector. The broad objectives of the conference
include to:
Provide a forum for interaction between academics and practitioners;
Provide an internationally recognised, accredited conference;
Disseminate recognised best practices, and
Contribute to the construction management body of knowledge.
The conference brings researchers, academics, and practitioners in higher education,
government, and the private sector together in a single forum. The scope and topics that
are organised around the conference theme are broad. In specific terms, the conference
seeks responses to critical questions, which include:
What changes would lead to an improvement in performance?
What are the barriers to change in practice?
How can business and project aspects of construction management be promoted?
How can education, training, and professional development be improved?
How can skills better be developed and transferred?
How can management difficulties be addressed?
How can efficiency and sustainability become engendered in the AEC sector?
The internationally peer reviewed and edited proceedings are thus aimed at contributing
to the body of knowledge relative to the science and practice of construction as well as
the improvement of construction management, teaching, learning, research and practice
in South Africa, and internationally.
Dr Fidelis A Emuze
Chair: Academic Programme
Bloemfontein, South Africa
November, 2014
iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The Chairs of the Technical and Academic Programmes of the 3rd
Construction
Management Conference are grateful to the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
(NMMU), the Central University of Technology, Free State (CUT), other South African
universities, and individuals for supporting the conference.
The work of the International Scientific Committee (ISC), who diligently compiled w
refereed and edited papers, and published proceedings of the highest standard that
satisfy the criteria for subsidy from the Department of Higher Education and Training
(DHET) in South Africa, is highly appreciated. The support of Prof Winston Shakantu
(NMMU) and Prof Alfred Ngowi (CUT) are warmly acknowledged. The efforts of Mrs
Mariana Botes, Dr Brink Botha, Mr Chris Allen, Ms Katharina Herich, and Mr Mark
Abrey of the NMMU Department of Construction Management; and Ms Zanelle
Matsane, Mr Arno Ferreira, and Mr Thabiso Monyane, are also commended.
v
ORGANISING COMMITTEE
Prof John Smallwood (Technical Programme Chair)
Dr Fidelis Emuze (Academic Programme Chair)
Mr Mark Abrey (Webmaster)
Mrs Mariana Botes (Administration – NMMU)
Ms Zanelle Matsane (Administration – CUT)
DECLARATION
All the papers in these conference proceedings were double-blind reviewed at abstract
and full paper stage by members of the Scientific Committee. This process entailed
detailed reading of the abstracts and papers, reporting of comments to authors,
modification of papers by authors whose papers were not rejected by the reviewers, and
re-evaluation of revised papers to ensure quality of content.
vi
THE PEER REVIEW PROCESS
To maintain and assure the quality of the conference proceedings and comply with the
requirements for subsidy from the Department of Higher Education and Training
(DHET) in South Africa, a rigorous two-stage peer review process by no less than two
acknowledged experts in the field was followed. In this context, each abstract received
was twice blind reviewed in terms of:
Relevance to conference theme and objectives;
Originality of material;
Scientific rigour, and
Contribution to knowledge.
Authors, whose abstracts were accepted, after the stage one review process was
completed, were provided with anonymous reviewers‘ comments and requested to
submit their full papers noting and addressing these comments. Proof was required
relative to the revisions by authors regarding the comments received. These resubmitted
papers were twice blind reviewed again in terms of:
Relevance to conference theme and objectives;
Originality of material;
Scientific rigour – Conceptual and Theoretical framework and Methodology, and
Contribution to knowledge.
Authors whose papers were accepted after this second review were provided with
additional anonymous reviewers‘ comments and requested to submit their revised full
papers. These final papers were only included in the conference presentation
programme and the conference proceedings after evidence was provided that all
comments were appropriately responded to, having been double peer-reviewed for
publication. At no stage was any member of the Scientific and Technical Committee or
the editor of the proceedings involved in the review process related to their own
authored or co-authored papers.
The role of the editor was to ensure that the final papers incorporated the reviewers‘
comments and arrange the papers into the final sequence as captured on the CD-ROM
and Table of Contents. Of the 59 abstracts originally received, only 27 papers were
finally accepted for presentation at the conference and inclusion in these proceedings,
representing a rejection rate of 54.2%. To be eligible for inclusion these papers were
required to receive a minimum score of 3 out of 5 allocated by the peer reviewers during
the final review process.
INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE
vii
The paper peer review exercise for this international conference was expedited through
the voluntary contributions of experts from various countries. Sincere appreciations go
to the under listed researchers that assisted in the review of abstracts and papers for the
Conference.
Prof Ayman Othman, British University in Egypt, Egypt
Prof Evelyn Ai‐Lin Teo, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Prof Sena A Agyepong, Ashesi University College, Ghana
Prof Tinus Maritz, University of Pretoria, RSA
Prof Low Sui Pheng, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Prof Herbert Uzoegbo, University of the Witwatersrand, RSA
Prof Chien-Ho Ko, National Pingtung University of Science & Technology, Taiwan
Prof Stella Zubairu, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Nigeria
Prof Salman Azhar, Auburn University, USA
Prof Hamimah Adnan, University Teknologi MARA, Malaysia
Prof Ricky Best, Bond University, Australia
Prof Esther Obonyo, University of Florida, USA
Prof FK Omole, Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria
Prof Willy Sher, University of Newcastle, Australia
Prof Low Sui Pheng, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Prof Miimu Airaksinen, VTT, Finland
Prof S Mohamed, Griffiths University, Australia
Prof Edward Badu, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Prof SE Owusu, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Prof Joshua Ayarkwa, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Prof Paul Alagidede, University of the Witswatersrand, RSA
Prof I Choudhury, Texas A&M University, USA
Prof Samuel Laryea, University of the Witwatersrand, RSA
Prof Emmanuel Achuenu, University of Jos, Nigeria
Dr Rodney Milford, Construction Industry Development Board, RSA
Dr Chika Udeaja, Northumbria University, UK
Dr Divine Ahadzie, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Dr Paul Ho, City University of Hong Kong, China
Dr Mohammed Ali Berawi, University of Indonesia, Indonesia
Dr Abimbola Windapo, University of Cape Town, RSA
Dr Nicholas Chileshe, University of South Australia, Australia
Dr Geraldine Kikwasi, Ardhi University, Tanzania
Dr Frank Fugar, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Dr Jasper Mbachu, Massey University, New Zealand
Dr Senthikumar Venkatachalam, University of the Witwatersrand, RSA
Dr AO Aiyetan, Central University of Technology, Free State, RSA
Dr RA Jimoh, Federal University of Technology, Minna, Nigeria
Dr John Ameh, University of Lagos, Nigeria
Dr BZN Gasa, The Elilox Group, RSA
Dr Nthatisi Khatleli, University of the Witwatersrand, RSA
Dr Ezekiel Chinyio, University of Wolverhampton, UK
Dr Nii Ankrah, University of Wolverhampton, UK
viii
Dr JA Fapohunda, Cape Penisula University of Technology, RSA
Dr Innocent Musonda, University of Johannesburg, RSA
Dr Obuks Ejohwomu, Bell University of Technology, Nigeria
Dr Justus Agumba, University of Johannesburg, RSA
Dr Suvi Nenonen, TKK, Finland
Dr Robert Crawford, University of Melbourne, Australia
Dr Grace KC King, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia
Dr Bernard K. Baiden, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Dr E Adinyira, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Dr PO Adjei, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Ghana
Dr Bing Li, Xiamen University, China
Dr Ahmed Doko Ibrahim, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria
Dr A Hartmann, University of Twente, The Netherlands
Dr Manya Mooya, University of Cape Town, RSA
Dr N Blismas, RMIT University, Australia
Dr John Ebohon, De Montfort University, UK
Dr E Ibem, Covenant University, Nigeria
Dr Dillip K Das, Central University of Technology, Free State, RSA
Dr Bankole O Awuzie, Central University of Technology, Free State, RSA
Dr Clinton O Aigbavboa, University of Johannesburg, RSA
Ms Llewellyn van Wyk, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, RSA
Mr Theuns Knoetze, Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, RSA
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TECHNICAL COMMITTEE
Prof John Smallwood, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, RSA
Prof Alfred Ngowi, Central University of Technology, Free State, RSA
Prof George Ofori, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Prof Winston Shakantu, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, RSA
Prof PD Rwelamila, University of South Africa, RSA
Prof Charles Egbu, London South Bank University, UK
Prof Hojjat Adeli, Ohio State University, USA (Honorary)
Prof Alfred Talukhaba, Tshwane University of Technology, RSA
Prof WD Thwala, University of Johannesburg, RSA
Prof PED Love, Curtin University of Technology, Australia
Prof David Edwards, Birmingham City University, UK
Prof Benedict Ilozor, East Michigan University, USA
Dr Nicholas Chileshe, University of South Australia, Australia
Dr Geraldine Kikwasi, Ardhi University, Tanzania
x
HOSTS
Department of Construction Management
Department of Built Environment
ENDORSEMENT
The South African Council for the Project and Construction Management Professions
(SACPCMP)
xi
November 2014
Dear Author,
PEER REVIEW PROCESS: 3rd
CM CONFERENCE: PORT ELIZABETH,
SOUTH AFRICA 2014
I confirm that the following peer review process was strictly undertaken in this
conference. Because of the need to maintain and assure the quality of the conference
proceedings and comply with the requirements for subsidy of the South African
Department of Higher Education, a rigorous two-stage peer review process by no less
than two acknowledged experts in the field was followed. In this context, each abstract
received was twice blind reviewed in terms of:
Relevance to conference theme and objectives;
Originality of material;
Academic rigour;
Contribution to knowledge, and
Research methodology.
Authors whose abstracts were accepted after the stage one review process was
completed were provided with anonymous reviewers‘ comments and requested to
submit their full papers noting and addressing these comments. Evidence was required
relative to the action taken by authors regarding the comments received. These
resubmitted papers were twice blind reviewed again in terms of:
Relevance to conference theme and objectives;
Originality of material;
Academic rigour;
Contribution to knowledge;
Research methodology and robustness of analysis of findings;
Empirical research findings, and
Critical current literature review.
Authors whose papers were accepted after this second review were provided with
additional anonymous reviewers‘ comments and requested to submit their revised final
papers. These final papers were only included in the conference presentation
programme and the conference proceedings after evidence was provided that all
comments were appropriately responded to, having been multiple peer-reviewed for
publication.
At no stage was any member of the Scientific and Technical Committee or the editor of
the proceedings involved in the review process related to their own authored or co-
authored papers. The role of the editor was to ensure that the final papers incorporated
the reviewers‘ comments and arrange the papers into the final sequence as captured on
the CD-ROM and Table of Contents.
xii
Of the 59 abstracts originally received, only 27 papers were finally accepted for
presentation at the conference and inclusion in these proceedings, representing a
rejection rate of 54.2%. To be eligible for inclusion these papers were required to
receive a minimum score of 3 out of 5 allocated by the peer reviewers during the final
review process.
Best wishes
Dr Fidelis A Emuze
Chair: Academic Programme
Bloemfontein, South Africa
xiii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
FOREWORD ................................................................................................................... iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS............................................................................................. iv
ORGANISING COMMITTEE ......................................................................................... v
DECLARATION .............................................................................................................. v
THE PEER REVIEW PROCESS .................................................................................... vi
INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE ......................................................... vi
TECHNICAL COMMITTEE .......................................................................................... ix
HOSTS.............................................................................................................................. x
ENDORSEMENTS .......................................................................................................... x
Political Risk Factors Influencing Export of Construction Services into African
Markets: A Preliminary Survey ...................................................................................... 16
OA Windapo, SJ Odediran, LO Oyewobi and KS Cattell KS
The challenges of implementing public private partnerships – a decision-making
framework for Zambia .................................................................................................... 25
Peter M Mukalula and Mundia Muya
Perception of construction industry stakeholders on the critical attributes that contribute
to project success ............................................................................................................ 34
Yvan Nimbona and Justus N Agumba
Project and construction managers‘ leadership characteristics in the South African
construction industry ...................................................................................................... 44
M Liphadzi and CO Aigbavboa
A Project Management Approach to Improve Housing Delivery .................................. 52
B Botha, Roy Cumberlege and Andrew Johnson
xiv
Fundamental factors that trigger the shortfall of skilled artisans in South African
construction .................................................................................................................... 61
Iruka Anugwo and Wayne Draai
Factors Influencing Skilled Labour Supply in the South African Construction Industry
........................................................................................................................................ 69
AO Windapo and SJ Odediran
Experiences of women in the construction industry: A case of South Africa ................ 80
GT Dlamini and WM Shakantu
An empirical analysis of the factors which influence construction workers‘ nutrition: A
pilot study ....................................................................................................................... 89
Chioma Okoro, Innocent Musonda and Justus Agumba
An exploratory study on the reduction of the cost of non-conformance to projects
requirements in the Swaziland construction ................................................................. 100
XN Mashwama and CO Aigbavboa
Quality Management practices in South African subsidised public housing schemes. 108
RM O‘Maker, CO Aigbavboa and WD Thwala
Determinants of employee job satisfaction and the influence of job dissatisfaction on
absenteeism and employee turnover, in the Gauteng Province .................................... 117
MP Lesailane, CO Aigbavboa and WD Thwala
An assessment of the barriers in adoption and implementation strategies of building
information modelling (BIM) in South African construction ...................................... 126
TG Kekana, CO Aigbavboa and WD Thwala
Advantages of Including Core Real Estate Topics in Bachelor of Construction
Management and Quantity Surveying Curricula in South Africa ................................ 134
Samuel HP Chikafalimani, Ganesan Reddy and Krishna Ramphal
Proper implementation of development programmes as a key driver for creating
construction industry interest among youth in Western Cape, South Africa ............... 142
MD Kazadi and L Wentzel
An architectural model for a healthier and safer construction industry in South Africa
...................................................................................................................................... 150
Craig Goldswain and John Smallwood
xv
Employers‘ attitude towards health and safety (H&S) improvement in the construction
industry ......................................................................................................................... 161
Z Mustapha, CO Aigbavboa and WD Thwala
Influence of the macro-economic environment on the prices of the construction material
in South Africa.............................................................................................................. 168
Adewumi Babalola1 and Fanie Buys
Assessing contractors‘ cash flow forecasting process capabilities ............................... 174
Muhammad Abdullahi, Yahaya M Ibrahim, Ahmed D Ibrahim and Hassan A Ahmadu
Causes and effects of disputes on construction projects in Johannesburg, South Africa
...................................................................................................................................... 186
L Maseko, CO Aigbavboa, and WD Thwala
An empirical analysis of dispute causation in the Limpopo construction industry ...... 195
ME Thobakgale and CO Aigbavboa
Exploratory study of critical success factors of road infrastructure projects in Abuja,
Nigeria: A probabilistic approach ................................................................................. 204
Ibrahim Binchak, Emmanuel Achuenu and Ache Achuenu
Direct and indirect causes of rework and their impact ................................................. 212
AO Aiyetan
An evaluation of the physical conditions of on-campus students‘ hostel blocks in a
public Nigerian university ............................................................................................ 220
AD Adamu and WM Shakantu
Construction risk management through the use of Contractors‘ All Risk (CAR)
insurance policy: A South African case study .............................................................. 226
S Musundire, CO Aigbavboa and WD Thwala
Perception of effectiveness of written communication in construction projects in Nigeria
...................................................................................................................................... 234
Anthony Ujene, Uche Edike and Emmanuel Achuenu
Knowledge of the Benefits of Green Building – Architects‘ Perspectives .................. 240
DJ Hoffman and E König
16
Political Risk Factors Influencing Export of Construction
Services into African Markets: A Preliminary Survey OA Windapo, SJ Odediran, LO Oyewobi and KS Cattell KS
4
Department of Construction Economics and Management,
University of Cape Town, South Africa,
Abstract
International risks influencing overseas construction markets were examined by earlier
studies, political risk factors influencing export of construction services into African markets
motivated this research due to recent political events in the continent. To investigate the
impact of political risk on export of construction services, the paper examines whether there
are significant political risk factors influencing export of construction services into African
markets. The paper is a preliminary convergence mixed method research. Stratified random
sampling of 597 construction companies with work categories in civil engineering and
general buildings, and on grades 7, 8 and 9 of cidb in South Africa was made. This research
design was adopted to explore South Africa construction companies exporting construction
services into African markets. Data collected from 58 construction companies who responded
to the online survey and interviews were analysed using descriptive (mean score) and
inferential (factor analysis) statistics. It emerged that the key political risk factors influencing
entry decision into African construction markets are red tape (legislative bottlenecks),
unstable government, corruption, administrative delays, and political uncertainty. The paper
concludes that there are significant political risk factors influence exports of construction
services into African markets. The paper will provide international construction companies
with the checklist of significant political risk factors in making strategic entry decision into
African construction markets.
Keywords:
Africa, construction, export, market, risks
Introduction
Construction market has amalgamated to become world (global/international) market due to
the implication of globalization (Ngowi, Pienaar, Talukhaba & Mbachu, 2005). The
continuous growth of the global construction market along with its growing openness to
international firms has created new business opportunities for many international engineering
and construction firms (Park, Lee, Jeong & Han, 2014). The World‘s construction market
was US$3 trillion in 1998 (Reina & Tulacz, 2010) and grown to approximately US$ 4.6
trillion as at 2006 (Global Insight, 2007). The revenue of the Top 225 international
contractors from projects outside their home countries was 383.78 billion in 2009 and the
biggest increases in international contracting revenue came from Africa. International
revenue in central and southern Africa for the top 225 grew by 31.7% to $27.52 billion in
2009 from $21.04 billion in 2008. North Africa grew by 30.8% among the Top 225 to $29.29
billion in 2009 from $21.04 billion in 2008 (Reina & Tulacz, 2010).
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This implies that African construction market is becoming a significant share of international
construction markets. However, construction markets in Africa is dominated by contractors
from developed nations like US, Europe, Asia and other regions (Bon & Crosthwaite, 2000;
Ofori, 2003; Reina & Tulacz, 2010; Deloitte & Touche, 2013) while participation of African-
based contractors on the continent is low (Reina & Tulacz, 2010). The reason why
international contractors from other continents dominate African construction markets
demand investigation. Overseas development projects are risky compare to typical risks that
domestic project face; and overseas development projects have unique risks and tend to have
high possibility of loss/failure (Han et al., 2007; Li, 2009). Risk is a critical issue for overseas
business which affects every aspect of firms‘ internal and external operations, and decision to
expand to international markets (Gunhan and Arditi, 2005; Park et al., 2014). Previous
studies have categorized risk factors in international markets into political,
economic/financial, social/natural, cultural and project environment risks (Nawaz & Hood,
2005; Li, 2009; Park, et al., 2014). The impact of political risks are often more critical and
sensitive to international construction markets (Al Khattaba, Anchorb & Daviesb, 2007;
Ozorhon et al., 2007; Li, 2009; Xiaopeng & Pheng, 2013), and political risks are unfamiliar
to foreign firms compare with those in the domestic environment (Xiaopeng & Pheng, 2013).
Political risks should not be overlooked when managing overseas projects (Wang et al.,
1999). Alas, previous studies pay little attention to political risks in making strategic entry
decision into international construction markets and there is dearth of researches on overseas
construction and international risks in African construction markets. This paper forms part of
a preliminary investigation on export of construction services among South African
construction companies with a view to exploring those exporting construction services into
African markets. The paper identifies and explores the political risk in African construction
markets with a view to establishing whether there are significant political risk factors
influencing export of construction services into African construction markets.
Review of Political Risk Factors
Political risks management remains a significant business and project issue today in
international business context (Jakobsen, 2010; Quer et al., 2011). Political risk is factors
associated with the political decisions, political events or societal events in a country.
Political risk factors have been classified into various groups namely the risks of adverse
consequences arising from political events (Root, 1972) or government action(s) (Aliber,
1975) known as ―intervention‖ (Zhuang et al., 1998) and the risks of change or discontinuity
in the government business environment as a result of political change (Robock, 1971). The
political events identified in previous studies (Bing et al., 2005; Al Khattab et al., 2007; Han
et al., 2007; Sachs et al., 2008; and Ling & Hoang, 2010) include: (1) political events (e.g.
revolutions, demonstrations, wars, civil strife, terrorism); (2) government action or inaction
(e.g., expropriation, confiscation or nationalization, restrictions, bribery and corruption,
discriminate treatment, change in law, regulation and policy); and (3) power group‘s action
(e.g., union activists and environmental activists). Political risk factors emanated from
government action(s) or intervention(s) could also be attributed to discriminatory
actions/inactions in the host country that would result in unexpected changes or
discontinuities in the business environment and unwanted potentials effect on the profit or
other goals of an enterprise (Xiaopeng & Pheng, 2013). However, political factors could also
be in forms of inconsistency in policies, changes in laws and regulations, restrictions in fund
repatriations and import restrictions that will impact the business climate (Howell, 2001;
Ozorhon et al., 2007).
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Xiaopeng & Pheng (2013) reported a comprehensive list of 85 political risk factors that could
influence entry decision into international construction markets. These factors originated
through the review of quite numbers of the earlier studies (Hastak and shaked, 2000; Frynas
and Mellahi, 2003; Al Khattab et al., 2007; Agarwal & Feils, 2007; Han et al., 2007; Alon &
Herbert, 2009; Rios-Morales et al., 2009; Ozorhon et al., 2007). These factors were
categorized into five groups which include those related to international environment, host
country, industry specific issues, project specific issues and firm specific issues.
Identification of the most significant political risk factors from the preceding studies was
made for the purpose of this study. These include corruption, administrative delays, red tape
(legislative bottleneck), unstable government, political uncertainty, and political orientations
in form of dictatorship, inhumane practice and shortage of qualified administrators. Others
include unsatisfactory tax administration, excessive government intervention in business,
insufficient coordination between government agencies, lack of institutional capacity in
government agencies, restrictions against foreign personnel, excessive local content
regulations, discrimination against foreign construction companies, excessive price controls,
insufficient coordination between government agencies and excessive requirements for
purchase of supplies from local companies. These political factors formed the basis in
designing research instrument to explore the experiences of South Africa construction
companies in export of construction services into African markets.
Research Methodology
This paper identifies and examines the political risk factors influencing the export of
construction services among grades 7, 8 and 9 construction companies in South Africa into
African construction markets. Construction companies on grades 7, 8 and 9 are those whose
revenues are in the ranges between R13, 000,000 to 40,000,000, R40, 000,000 to 130,000,000
and R130, 000,000 to no limit; and these are approximately equivalents of 1.3-4MillionUSD;
4-13MillionUSD and 13MillionUSD to no limit respectively. Data for this paper were
collected through convergence mixed method research approach which combines the survey
and interview of construction companies registered on grades 7, 8 and 9 on the Construction
Industry Development Board (cidb) register. Those on the largest grades were selected for
this study since Engineering News Record (ENR) ranking of international contractors is often
based on those with the largest international revenues. Review of literature was undertaken to
identify the significant political risk factors on international construction studies. These
formed the constructs of the survey and interview questions. The study population comprised
of construction companies registered on grades 7, 8 and 9 on the cidb contractors register.
Selection of construction companies across provinces in South Africa was made using
stratified random sampling technique since the highest grade of these companies were
selected because of the focus of this study. A list of 707 construction companies as unit of
analysis was obtained from cidb register in 2013 although work categories of some
companies are more than 1. Those whose construction works category fall into civil
engineering and general building were selected for this study. A total of 597 copies of
questionnaire were sent to those on this grades using survey monkey since statistics on those
actually exporting construction services was not available. 58 construction companies
spanned across the three grades responded to the survey and were used for analysis. The
response rate of 10% was obtained which provides insight into the proportion of South
African construction companies exporting their services within African construction markets.
From this same unit of analysis, a call was sent for interview and 8 construction companies
volunteered to participate in the interview, which was conducted at different offices of the
19
responding companies in March 2014. Data collected were analysed using descriptive (mean
score) and inferential statistics (factor analysis). Mean score ranked the perception of
construction companies on the significant political risk factors influencing export decision
while factor analysis was employed to reduce the identified political factors into major
components.
Findings and Discussion
Background Information of the Construction Companies
The capabilities of South African construction companies on grades 7, 8 and 9 in terms of
their revenues were presented in the earlier section. Interviews conducted shows that, the 8
interviewed construction companies specialized in civil engineering (CE) and general
building (GB). The level of involvement of South Africa construction companies in export of
construction services from interview conducted shows that out of 8 construction companies, 1
company is an expanding exporter, 3 are continuing exporters, 3 new exporters and 1 non-
exporter respectively. The construction services export of these construction companies was
highly concentrated in Namibia, Botswana, Swaziland, Mozambique, Angola and Ghana.
These countries are from Southern African Development Community (SADC) excluding
Ghana. Countries where they have moderate operations are Tanzania, Congo DR, Kenya,
Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Mauritius and Madagascar while their operations in other countries are
low.
Political Risk Factors influencing Export of Construction Services
Table 1 shows the ranking of the identified political risk factors influencing export of
construction services by South African construction companies into African markets. The top
rated factors include red tape (legislative bottlenecks), unstable government (government
term and change), corruption, administrative delays and political uncertainty. Other factors
were also ranked high and are perceived to be significant to construction services export
decision into African construction markets. These include extreme political orientation
(dictatorship and inhumane practices), excessive government intervention in business,
insufficient coordination between government agencies, lack of institutional capacity in
government agencies, unsatisfactory tax administration, shortage of qualified administrators,
restrictions against foreign personnel, excessive local content/pressure for local participation
in foreign owned companies, discrimination against foreign construction companies,
excessive price controls and excessive requirements for purchase of supplies from local
companies.
These findings were supported by Howell (2001) and Ozorhon et al. (2007) who established
that political risk originates from country political decision in form of inconsistency in
policies, changes in laws and regulations; and import restrictions. Root (1972) also affirmed
that political risks arise from political events; and government action(s) or intervention
(Aliber, 1975; Zhuang et al., 1998) and political change/discontinuity in the government
business (Robock, 1971). Political risk is further buttressed to be embedded in political
events, discriminatory actions or inactions (by government or power groups) in the host
country (Xiaopeng and Pheng, 2013). The possible political events identified by previous
studies also include government action or inaction in form of expropriation, confiscation or
nationalization, restrictions, bribery and corruption, discriminate treatment, change in law,
regulation and policies (Ashley and Bonner, 1987; Wang et al., 1999; Hastak and shaked,
2000; Howell 2001; Bing et al., 2005; Al Khattab et al., 2007; Han et al., 2007; Sachs et al.,
2008; and Ling and Hoang, 2010). Xiaopeng and Pheng (2013) also highlighted significant
20
political factors to include degree of stability of the government, project desirability to the
host country, policy uncertainty, racism and xenophobia, unfavourable attitude towards
foreign businesses, adverse legal rulings and strong relationship with governments which also
support the findings of this paper.
Table 1: Political Factors influencing Construction Services Export to African Market
Political Factors Mean Rank
"Red Tape" (Legislative Framework Bottlenecks) 3.63 1
Unstable government (government term & change) 3.58 2
Corruption 3.56 3
Administrative delays 3.54 4
Political uncertainty (insufficient confidence in the political
system/commitment of successive governments)
3.50 5
Political orientation in form of dictatorship, inhumane practices etc. 3.50 6
Excessive government intervention in business 3.50 7
Insufficient coordination between government agencies 3.49 8
Lack of institutional capacity in government agencies 3.44 9
Unsatisfactory Tax administration 3.34 10
Shortage of qualified administrators 3.26 11
Restrictions against foreign personnel 3.24 12
Excessive local content regulations 3.11 13
Discrimination against foreign construction companies 2.97 14
Excessive price controls 2.97 15
Excessive requirements for purchase of supplies from local companies 2.97 16
To further explore the political risk factors, the list of factors identified and ranked in Table 1
were subjected to factor analysis with each item treated as variables with the aim of reducing
them to few significant factors which will be used in the description of closely related factor
and those sharing the same features (Odediran and Babalola, 2014). The appropriateness of
the list of political risk factors was tested using Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) measure of
sampling adequacy (MSA) and the Bartlett‘s test of sphericity. The KMO value of a set of
scores should be close to 1 for factor analysis to yield distinct and reliable factors (Field,
2005) and KMO measure of sampling adequacy should be greater than 0.5 for satisfactory
factor analysis to proceed. The result obtained satisfied these conditions and is presented in
Table 2. KMO value was 0.813 showing that factors analysis is appropriate for the type of
data collected for this study, and Bartlett‘s test of sphericity showed that the result was highly
significant (χ2 = 4.839E3, p< 0.01).
Table 2: Test of Sample Adequacy, Appropriateness and Reliability
KMO and Bartlett's Test
Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin Measure of Sampling Adequacy. .813
Bartlett's Test of
Sphericity
Approx. Chi-Square 573.545
df 120
Sig. .000
The result of factor rotation yielded three (3) components as shown in Table 3 which
classifies the identified political risk factors into various groups sharing equal and relevant
features, and factor analysis also reduces a large number of factors to a smaller number of
groups for modelling purposes. Each of the political risk factors was grouped as sub-factor
under the three (3) components identified from factor loadings as shown in Table 3. The
loading scores ranges from 0.565 to 0.940 which is averagely high compare to absolute
21
loading of 1. The closer the loading value is to 1, the more suitable and the strength of that
particular factor. The rotated component matrix produced three (3) components and based on
the common features of the factors within each of the groups, the components were named as
political and officials obligations, local content requirements; and institutional and
administrative system (Table 4). Component 1 named political and officials‘ obligations and
the yielded rotated factors under this component are seven (7) which include unstable
government, extreme political orientation, and political uncertainty, excessive government
intervention in business, excessive price control and discrimination against foreign personnel.
Five (5) out the seven (7) factors listed under this component were ranked high by the
respondents in Table 1. This further confirms the perception of the construction companies
who participated in the survey and interviews on how these political factors influence and are
significant in the export of construction services into African construction markets.
Component 2 was named local content requirements and the yielded rotated factors under
this component are three (3) which include excessive requirements for purchase of supplies
from local companies, excessive local content regulations/pressure for local participation in
foreign owned companies and restrictions against foreign personnel. These factors were
ranked low on the Table 1 but their mean scores were high. The third (3) component was
named institutional and administrative system and the yielded rotated factors were made up
of six (6) which comprises of lack of institutional capacity in government agencies,
insufficient coordination between government agencies, administrative delays, shortage of
qualified administrators, unsatisfactory tax administration and red tape (legislative
bottlenecks). Two (2) out these factors were ranked high by the construction companies on
Table 1 and they include administrative delays and red tape which shows that institutional
and administrative system is significant to export of construction services within African
markets.
Table 3: Rotated Component Matrix
a of the Political Factors
Factors Component
1 2 3
Unstable government (government term & change) .824
Extreme political orientation - Dictatorships, inhumane practices .940
Political uncertainty (insufficient confidence in the political system/commitment
of successive governments)
.883
Excessive government intervention in business .929
Excessive requirements for purchase of supplies from local companies .565
Excessive price controls .586
Excessive local content regulations/pressures for local participation in foreign
owned companies
.888
Discrimination against foreign construction companies .666
Restrictions against foreign personnel .739
Corruption .652
Lack of institutional capacity in government agencies .803
Insufficient coordination between government agencies .823
Administrative delays .790
Shortage of qualified administrators .848
Unsatisfactory Tax administration .765
"Red Tape" (Legislative Framework Bottlenecks) .740
Extraction Method: Principal Component Analysis.
Rotation Method: Varimax with Kaiser Normalization
a. Rotation converged in 5 iterations.
22
Table 4: Reduced Component Political Factors
S/N Component Factor Sub-Factors
A Political and Officials
Obligations
Unstable government (government term & change)
Extreme political orientation - Dictatorships, inhumane practices
Political uncertainty (insufficient confidence in the political
system/commitment of successive governments)
Excessive government intervention in business
Excessive price controls
Discrimination against foreign construction companies
Corruption
B Local Content Requirements Excessive requirements for purchase of supplies from local companies
Excessive local content regulations/pressures for local participation in
foreign owned companies
Restrictions against foreign personnel
C Institutional and
Administrative System
Lack of institutional capacity in government agencies
Insufficient coordination between government agencies
Administrative delays
Shortage of qualified administrators
Unsatisfactory Tax administration
"Red Tape" (Legislative Framework Bottlenecks)
Conclusion and Further Research
This paper identified and examined the political risk factors in African construction markets
with a view to establishing whether there are significant political factors influencing the
export of construction services by South African construction companies into African
construction markets. Sixteen (16) political factors were identified from literature that
constitute the construct and design variables for this paper. The top rated factors include red
tape (legislative bottlenecks), unstable government (government term and change),
corruption, administrative delays and political uncertainty. The principal components
classification of these factors was made into political and officials obligations, local content
requirements; and institutional and administrative system. The most significant numbers of
these factors are associated with political and officials‘ obligations, explained by factors such
as instability in government, uncertainty in politics, political orientation, government
intervention in business and corruption. This indicates that the basis of the influence of
political risk factors on export of construction services is due to the actions/inactions and
political will of African leaders and the degree of sincerity, openness and commitment of
government officials in public administration and management. This is followed by
institutional and administrative system enlightened by factors such as administrative delays,
tax system, legislative bottleneck, lack of institutional capacity and human resource ache.
This shows that a strong and sustainable institution framework is a sine qua non for effective
cross-border trades in construction services within African markets.
It becomes evident that the political officials‘ (elected or appointed) obligations,
responsibilities, willingness and sincerity are imperative in the export of construction services
into African construction markets otherwise the political risk factors revolting consequences
will continue to hamper infrastructural investments and economic growth in African
economies. Based on the perception and international experience of South African
construction companies, the paper concludes that there are significant political risk factors
23
that influence the export of construction services into African markets. This paper is a part of
feasibility study on export of construction services among South African construction
companies. It is also a pilot investigation for future research on influence of international
risks and construction company capabilities on entry decision into African construction
markets.
Acknowledgement
The financial assistance of the Construction Industry Development Board (cidb) South Africa
towards this research is hereby acknowledged. Opinions expressed or conclusions arrived at,
are those of the authors and not necessarily to be attributed to the cidb.
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25
The challenges of implementing public private
partnerships – a decision-making framework for Zambia Peter M Mukalula and Mundia Muya
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering,
University of Zambia, Zambia
Abstract:
The Zambian government in 2009 enacted the Public Private Partnership (PPP) Policy and
Act No. 14 to encourage private sector participation in national development. The PPP mode
of procurement offers governments in developing countries an alternative means of securing
major social and economic infrastructure. However, there have been difficulties with
streamlining clear procedures in the implementation process resulting in the slow uptake of
PPP projects. Using structured interviews and a questionnaire survey, information was
gathered on the implementation processes being used. The duplication in decision-making
channels remains a challenge that must be overcome. A decision-making framework is
suggested to solve this management problem. Although a few major projects were reviewed,
the study provided a classic example of how weak regulatory frameworks would not only
lead to the unsuccessful implementation of projects but also engender poor decision-making.
Keywords:
Decision-making framework, Public Private Partnerships, Zambia
Introduction
Governments on a worldwide basis are exploring alternative modes of procurement for major
infrastructure projects (Li et al., 2005; Ndandiko, 2006). This has been necessitated because
of high country debt loads and the desire to achieve greater efficiencies in the delivery of
infrastructure and services (Jefferies, 2006; Grimsey and Lewis, 2002). Improved efficiency
and accountability is now the accepted norm in open competitive tendering in contractual
practices, a method favoured by multilateral lending agencies. Globally, governments are
exhibiting a change in philosophy with preference to purchasing infrastructure services as
opposed to financing, designing and operating the physical infrastructure with its attendant
risks (Jefferies, 2006). Consequently, the concept of PPP has gained prominence over the
traditional form of procurement (Akintoye, 2009). PPPs usually work on the principle of
having a synergy of the public and private sector. Akintoye (2009) cites three factors which
have enabled the stage to be set for PPPs in Africa – the changing economic, social and
political environment with its globalisation influence, instituted measures for control of
public sector borrowing and the vital role that modern infrastructure plays in economic
growth and poverty alleviation which has been largely crippled by inadequate levels of public
sector income in emerging economies. Consequently, African countries have started
recording an increasing number of projects based on the PPP concept in their quest to provide
supporting infrastructure for their growing economic activities (World Bank, 2002). With a
rapidly increasing urbanized society and an expanding need for basic infrastructure, Zambia
has adopted the PPP mode of development in tandem with the African and international
community (Mukela, 2006; Zulu and Muleya, 2009). In many African countries,
governments are willing to implement projects through the PPP model (Li and Akintoye,
26
2003). However, a contrary view has been expressed by Ndandiko (2006) and Zulu and
Muleya (2009) who pointed out that in Sub-Saharan Africa, those attempting this mode of
procurement are faced with challenges of inadequate regulatory frameworks and
impoverished public and private sectors which are necessary requisites to the success of PPPs
(Li, 2005; Zhang, 2005).
The aim of this paper was to highlight two knowledge gaps in issues of governance
pertaining to PPPs. This work is part of an on-going doctoral thesis hence data presented has
not been taken to a further stage of analysis using a statistical package. Findings from this
research revealed that though there has been eagerness to adopt the PPP mode of
development; it is very misunderstood by professionals. Many fear that the introduced law
may not encourage greater participation through innovation and the private sector lacks
direction in properly implementing PPPs. The decision-making framework will seek to bridge
the gap in indecision currently faced by the industry. The findings from this paper will guide
line ministries in finance and commerce to adopt the proposed mechanism so as to speed up
development. To fulfill the objectives of the research, structured interviews and
questionnaires were used to collect data.
Literature Review
The quest for governments to involve the private sector in development of infrastructure is
one that is encouraged worldwide (Li and Akintoye, 2003). Various avenues of development
are thus utilised to enable governments develop their economies. Among such avenues are
privatisation, concessions and public private partnerships. PPPs were viewed as
advantageous as they integrate the public and private sectors in a long term partnership. Two
factors have enabled governments to take on board private investors. The first reason is that
basic infrastructure is fundamentally capital-intensive while the second is the competitive
demands for government budgetary resources (Alfen et al., 2009). In a bid to reduce the
widening demand-supply infrastructure gap, governments seek to fulfill social commitments
amid fiscal constraints. Public provision of services in developed countries using PPPs has
included projects for education, waste water management, public buildings and health
services. Developing countries on the other hand have extensive infrastructure needs which
have seen the use of PPPs for water, power and road sector projects (Akintoye, 2009). This
list has expanded by adding the telecom sector as being recipients of huge investments in
physical infrastructure. Private sector participation in infrastructure in developing countries
would persist owing to favourable investment conditions.
Governance
Demand for public services coupled with the fiscal crisis in the public sector has led to a new
set of circumstances. The OECD (2008) predicted that the world economy is expected to
grow at about 3 percent per annum to the year 2030. Much of this growth will be in
developing countries. Governments therefore have to undertake such service delivery through
the option of decentralized management and market mechanisms (Pongsiri, 2002).
Governance is a matter of grave concern. Stoker (1998) defined governance as the
development of governing styles where the principles of accountability, transparency,
fairness, efficiency, participation and decency are embraced. Alfen et al. (2009) defined
governance as a decision making process. Governance must therefore embrace transparency
in all its decision making processes. Abednego and Ogunlana (2006) developed the good
project governance (GPG) concept that is aimed at evaluating performance under the PPP
27
procurement mode. Abednego and Ogunlana (2006) further argued that proper risk allocation
is only achievable through good governance which in turn leads to better project
performance. The project governance concept comprising eight characteristics stated the
following (Abednego and Ogunlana, 2006):
The right decisions at the right time, recognizing the active participation of the parties
involved;
Contract fairness ensuring that the rule of law was the framework that enforced
impartiality in application of rules between the parties;
Information transparency which enabled that information be available to those affected by
decisions;
Responsiveness being the ability to carry out decisions within a specific timeframe;
Continuous project control and monitoring so as to ensure the achieving common goals
amongst stakeholders;
Equality implies that all parties to the contract are equal;
Effectiveness and efficiency which would ensure that results produced meet people‘s
needs as well as make best use of available resources, and
Accountability in having to fulfill the twofold objective of user satisfaction and
community participation
Abednego and Ogunlana (2006) suggested that a contractor‘s pre-finance (CPF) as the best
risk allocation strategy. This strategy shifted the responsibility of financing the project from
the owner to the contractors. This also meant that other cash-flow and liquidity problems
subsisting with the owner could be circumvented. This is due to the fact that the loan would
be made directly between the financial institutions and the contractors.
Decision-making studies involve project risk management. The critical nature of risks for any
project is influenced by a combination of political, legal, economic and the social
environment of the country. PPP success therefore enables both the public and private entities
the opportunity to evaluate risks emanating from these areas which are carefully included in
contract conditions (Zhang, 2009). The following knowledge gaps were identified in the
reviewed literature: (i) The need to investigate what critical success factors influence decisions made regarding risks on
PPP projects;
(ii) The need to find out what an effective risk allocation mechanism must achieve to enhance
decision making;
(iii) The need to measure the effects of the major risks affecting project phases;
(iv) The need to investigate net present value distribution over the project noting what beneficial
effects would be obtained, and
(v) The need to investigate what appropriate risk mitigation methods are applied to successful PPP
projects.
This paper seeks to answer objectives (i) and (ii).
Research Methodology
The research design adopted for the study consisted of a mixed method research. Creswell
(2003) states that such must aggregate the philosophy, strategy of enquiry and specific
methods used. Data were collected using structured interviews and questionnaires. Structured
interviews offered uniformity in the questions asked while questionnaires extensively
explored issues that were raised through the interviews. Adjustments to the questions were
28
made to ensure that they were qualitatively of an ‗open type‘. The interviews were designed
to re-tell professional experience and interviewees were selected from top management of
different key stakeholders. Each interview lasted between 30 and 40 minutes. Extensive notes
were taken during the interviews. The spacing of the interviews enhanced establishment of
good contact and firm arrangement of dates and venues. Moreover, the spacing of the
interviews also helped in the compilation of the information and progressive analysis of the
data. The interviews were recorded using a digital voice recorder. The recorded interviews
were then transcribed. All interviewees were assured of anonymity as required by the
research ethics committee.
Findings and Discussion
Owing to the fact that PPPs were novel in Zambia at the time of the study, a purposive
sample of 10 stakeholder interviewees were selected based on their knowledge of the PPP
procurement mode. Later on, questionnaires were distributed to a targeted stratified sample of
150 professionals consisting of client organisations, and key decision makers for projects
such as engineers, architects, valuation and quantity surveyors. However data analysed for
this paper was based on 70 questionnaires that were first distributed. 30 questionnaires had
been returned which were carefully reviewed for correctness in responses. Out of the 30, 15
were rejected giving a response of 20.2%. Similar researches have even attained percentages
as low as 11 and 14 per cents. Four main areas were the focus of the interviews and
questionnaire survey which included critical success factors for PPPs, the risk perception and
allocation in the project, investment objectives pursued in projects as well as what financial
decision-making tools are used on projects. Descriptive analysis was used on the qualitative
data collected (Silverman, 2010).
Background information on respondents
Respondents interviewed held high or middle level positions in their organisations. Four out
of the ten were senior managers while five were middle managers. One was a chair person of
a private sector organisation. The level of experience varied from 2 to 14 years. The results
show that the interviewees were in positions where they could articulate issues related to
PPPs.
Critical Success Factors
Interviewees were asked if the introduced PPP law had helped in the implementation of the
projects in Zambia. Out of the ten interviewed, five of the respondents agreed. They were
also of the view that without the PPP law, nothing much would have been accomplished.
Although many projects were at ‗drawing board level‘, their increase is a sign of developer‘s
confidence in the legal framework. One interviewee was not sure if the introduction of the
law has ‗had any tangible effect‘.
Interviewees were asked what would make PPPs to succeed in Zambia and each was able to
give two to three responses. A good working structure was mentioned four times while
‗delegate work to the private sector‘ had three occurrences.
29
A – Good working structure B –Delegate work to the private sector
C –Clarity of policy D – Publicity or sensitization of PPPs
E –Developing capacities F – Thorough PPP knowledge
G – Stable macroeconomic environment H – Government guarantees
Figure1: Critical Success Factors
The rest of the critical success factors got single citations from the respondents as shown in
Figure 1. Interviewees suggested that a good working structure was necessary for PPPs to be
successful. Though a legal framework is in place yet proper procedures seem not to be in
place. Interviewees were asked regarding the understanding of PPP concepts in the Zambian
construction industry. There was an affirmative answer from four of the interviewees while
two of them responded with an outright ‗no‘. The other four stated that it ‗was doubtful‘. This
suggests that professionals in the industry are still not clear about PPP concepts.
The questionnaire survey expanded the list of critical success factors that have been used in
decision-making using a 5 point numerical scale. The three factors that gave a mean score of
4.2 were for good governance, project technical feasibility and appropriate risk allocation as
shown in Figure 2. ‗Good governance‘ was the only point of agreement with ‗good working
structure‘ obtained from the structured interviews.
Figure 2: Critical success factors used in decision-making
30
Risk Perception and Allocation
Interviewees were asked as to which risks would make the implementation of PPPs a difficult
task. Thirteen risks were singled out as influencing the Zambian construction industry. Of
these, political and high interest risk received seven occurrences, respectively. These were
followed by ‗lack of consistent policies‘ which had five occurrences. Ten risks had a single
occurrence as shown in Figure 3 denoted by D to M.
A – Political risk B – High interest rate risk
C – Lack of consistent economic policies D – Foreign exchange risk
E – Global market influences F – Land acquisition difficulties
G – Lack of design H – Construction coordination risk
I – Force majeure J – Social risk
K – Investment risk L – Poor governance risk
M – Financial risk
Figure 3: Project Risks in Zambia
On the allocation of risk, interviewees were asked as to how risks should be allocated.
Interviewees gave five different responses. ‗Government only‘ bearing the risk as well as ‗the
best party to handle risk‘ each had 3 occurrences, respectively. This was followed by the
private sector bearing the risk which had 2 occurrences. Sharing risk equally and having risk
dealt with in other ways such as engaging a bank, each got a single occurrence from the
interviewees. Results from the questionnaire survey however showed that 60% preferred the
private sector to bear risks leading to the implementation of the project while that of shared,
27% and that to be borne by the public recorded 7%.
Investment objectives
Investment objectives are themes that PPP projects often follow. Interviewees were asked to
state what objectives projects implemented had followed. The pursuit of ‗social infrastructure
development‘ had three occurrences. This was followed by the private sector that has a ‗profit
31
benefit‘ receiving five responses from the interviewees. Economic infrastructure was third
with four occurrences. Improvement of social and economic infrastructure each had two
occurrences while ‗business diversification‘ had one occurrence indicated by the
interviewees.
Interviewees were asked if the above stated objectives were aided by the PPP policy and Act
No. 14. The number of respondents that agreed that the law had instigated such objectives
was four while six stated that they were ‗not sure‘. There were no responses for those that
stated ‗no‘. Those that had answered ‗not sure‘ did so because they had not read Act No. 14
hence, could not correlate what was happening in the industry with the introduction of the
legislation. This suggests that though there is legislation that oversees PPPs, there is lack of
understanding of what is involved.
Financial decision-making tools
Interviewees were asked to indicate which financial decision-making tools had been used on
implemented PPP projects. A total number of 6 tools were identified as shown in Figure 3. It
was observed that projects applied a combination of decision-making tools. The financial
appraisal tool was the most commonly cited by 8 interviewees. This was followed by cash
flow analysis that had two occurrences from respondents. The other decision-making tools
used were profit and loss analysis, development concept, cost/benefit analysis and life cycle
costing which had a single response each.
A – Financial appraisals B – Cash flow analysis
C – Profit and loss analysis D – Development concept
E – Cost benefit analysis F – Life cycle costing
Figure 4: Financial decision-making tools
Respondents were asked on the effects of decision-making on project risk. The effect of using
decision-making tools was that it enabled projects to be assessed which received five
occurrences. This was followed by ‗identification and mitigation of risk‘ and ‗instils trust‘
that had two responses from the interviewees, respectively. Enhancing decision-making had 1
occurrence. The main effect of decision-making tools was the ability to make informed
decisions. Interviewees were asked as to which decision-making tools were considered
important for projects by financial institutions. A total number of seven decision-making
tools were listed from the responses of the interviewees. Financial appraisals were the
preferred decision-making tool by financial institutions as stated by six interviewees. The
other utilised tools were the business plan, cash flow analysis, public sector comparator, life
cycle costing, equity requirements and assurance of business, each was given a single
response.
32
Framework for decision-making
The implementation of PPP projects in Zambia has a very lengthy procedure. There were 17
steps identified in the current procedure. The process could take periods of one to three years.
Cost implications of the procedure will be the subject of future papers. Decision-making
starts from the conceptualisation of the project. The government departments have to give
consent starting with the registration of the concept till the final clearance is given by the
Office for Promoting Private Power Investment (OPPPI) in the Ministry of Mines, Energy
and Water Development as shown in Figure 5 below. The decision-making process would be
carried out within a period of six to twelve months in seeking to redress stifled development.
CONCEPTUALISATION
__________________________
APPROVAL YES NO RE-ASSESS
YES NO
BENEFITS
Figure 5: Proposed decision-making framework (based on research data)
Conclusion and Further Research
Zambia has recently introduced a law on PPPs to curb the backlog in the development. Based
on a mixed method research design, structured interviews and questionnaires were used to
collect data. Owing to perceived risks for countries adopting this mode of development in
Africa, this paper sought to answer the difficulty of decision-making. Findings are that there
is need for professionals to have deeper understanding of the PPP mode of development.
Further research must seek to address specific risks and their impact on projects.
Project
Identification
Project Analysis
Project Implementation
Monitoring Financial
management
Project reconciliations
Risk
allocation
33
Acknowledgement
I wish to thank my sponsors, the Copperbelt University for supporting this research work.
The encouragement of my supervisor, Dr Muya, as well as those of my friends cannot go
unnoticed.
References
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finance and management for public-private partnerships, Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell
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negative factors influencing the attractiveness of PFI/PPP procurement for construction
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development. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 131(1), pp. 3-14.
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Southern Africa, Livingstone, Zambia.
34
Perception of construction industry stakeholders on the
critical attributes that contribute to project success Yvan Nimbona and Justus N Agumba
Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
The construction industry has created business opportunities, which has resulted in the
creation of jobs and alleviation of poverty in South Africa. However, construction projects
have been reported as being more complex, difficult to achieve, and require advanced skills.
In addition, a high number of project failure has been reported, which consequently has
contributed to client‘s dissatisfaction. Therefore, the main purpose of this study is to identify
key attributes that will enable contractors to achieve successful construction projects in South
Africa. In an attempt to investigate these key attributes that were developed from literature
review and validated using two participants, a total of 75 questionnaires were randomly
distributed to industry stakeholders. Fifty usable questionnaires were returned representing
66.7% response rate. The data collected was analyzed using Excel 2010 and the results were
presented using descriptive statistics. The findings revealed that the main attribute that led to
unsuccessful construction projects was financial problems. It was also posited that selecting
contractors for a project should be based on good quality of work. Furthermore, attributes
highly perceived to be critical for successful project outcome were proper planning, good
leadership quality, and effective monitoring and communication attributes. In conclusion, the
findings of this study revealed the attributes that prevent contractors achieving a successful
project; it suggested what should be considered in selecting a contractor for a project and
further provided a clear understanding of contractors‘ attributes that would lead to project
success outcome. However, further study is recommended to test the causal relationship of
the critical attributes and project outcome.
Keywords:
Critical success attributes, Contractor selection, project success
Background of the Problem In South Africa, the construction industry remains an essential contributor to the economy of
the country, with its contribution of 4.9% to the gross domestic product. It was further
reported that the number of employees in the construction industry amounted to 424 000 of
employees in the course of the first quarter of 2014 (Statistics South Africa, 2014).
Furthermore, Mbatha and Mokhema (2014) stated that the construction industry hired around
99 000 people in the third quarter of 2014, hence resulted as the highest hiring industry in the
third quarter of 2014.
Despite the importance of the construction industry, the industry continues to grapple with
familiar issues such as prevalence of clients‘ dissatisfaction, shortage of skills (which end up
affecting planning and implementation), non-expenditure of budgets, unfair tender
procurement and the slow awarding of contracts. Challenges such as project delays, poor
estimating practices, failed risk management processes, poor subcontractor performance,
design errors, lack of available resources, lack of quality improvement, lack of worker
participation and poor client relations continue to worsen the delivery of construction
35
projects. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to identify key attributes that will enable
contractors to achieve successful construction projects in South Africa.
Factors Preventing Contractors from achieving Project Success The difficulties of achieving project success, particularly large and complex construction
projects according to Ncwadi & Dangalazana (2005), is due to the complexity of the industry
namely dealing with peoples‘ behaviour, cost of building materials. Millet et al. (2000)
opined that lack of good relationship among project participants (main contractors,
subcontractors) yield difficulties related to project success. They further articulated the issues
of delayed payments, traditional contractual arrangements, holding of retention monies, lack
of trust, unfair treatments and non-recognition of excellent performance as contributing
factors to project failure. Windapo and Cattell (2013) argued that the major causes for failure
faced in the course of executing construction projects are more related to finances i.e. the
increasing costs of building materials, the difficulty accessing mortgage or credits, and the
high interest rates.
Moreover, these writers advocate that the main issue to highlight here is the increasing costs
of building materials, which occurs due to high demand for certain types of building
materials and the reliance on particular materials. The South African Forum of Civil
Engineering Contractors (2014) presented that the construction industry is confronted with
challenges such as shortage of skills as a critical constraint to improve successful delivery of
projects and also affecting project planning and implementation, non-expenditure of budgets,
unfair tender procurement to be the most influential to contractors to achieve project success.
Mahamid (2013) posits that labour productivity is one of the very important issues in
construction industry. However, without human performance other resources would not be
transformed into productive use.
Ntuli and Allopi (2014) these authors opined that poor human resource development, lack of
understanding tendering process, lack of knowledge to develop business plans for their
business, lack of understanding of the CIDB‘s role in the industry, lack of operational and
managerial skills amongst contractors, under-pricing are barriers to project success. Mbachu
and Nkado (2006) concur with the conclusions of the previous authors with regards to
managerial skills. They further established two categories of constraints namely; controllable
(internal) factors i.e. project characteristics, consultants‘ and contractors‘ influences, client
organisational influences. The other was uncontrollable (external) factors i.e. socio-cultural
issues, unforeseen circumstances, economic and global dynamics and governmental/statutory
controls.
In Uganda, Otim et al. (2011) revealed the main causes of uncompleted buildings in Uganda:
misuse of funds, poor planning and poor management, underestimate of resources and time,
unreliable source of finance, inadequate supervision, lack of experience, accidents,
substandard work, inflation, faulty and incomplete designs, inadequate feasibility study,
inadequate professional training, deaths, and corruption. In Malaysia, Ali et al. ( 2010) found
that the main causes that contributed to unsuccessful construction projects included
contractor‘s finance, construction mistakes and defective work, labour shortage, coordination
problems, shortage of tools and equipment, material shortage and poor site management.
Furthermore, Hatush and Skitmore (1997) argued that the tendering and awarding of projects
are still influenced by the traditional procurement procedures. In some cases this has led to
appointment of an insufficient and inappropriate contractor leading to sub-standard work,
delays, disputes or even bankruptcy. However, the above literature shows a different
36
perception over the causes for unsuccessful project, hence the exact causes for failure could
not be drawn decisively.
Factors to be considered when Appointing Contractors The selection of a contractor is perhaps one of the most important client‘s decisions before
embarking in a construction project. Vermeulen (2013) argued that successful projects
depend on the skill, experience and the technical ability of the contractor. Hatush and
Skitmore (1997) argue that awarding a project solely looking at the lowest bid cannot assure
project success and that the clients and clients‘ representatives should consider much more
selection criteria in order to award a project. Brauers et al. (2008) and Jennings and Holt
(1998) argue that past performance, past experience with the contractor, contractor
experience, reputation, expected quality and delivery time, recommendations from other
project owners and tendering price are weighted and combined together for choosing which
contractor to be awarded a project.
Vermeulen (2013) concluded that besides the iron triangle of cost, quality and time being
perceived as most important by project owners in the contractor selection process, other
important criteria are; risk, past experience with the contractor, the type of projects and the
contractor‘s reputation. Similarly, Huang (2011) highlighted that majority of clients prefer to
award a project to contractors with whom they had a successful cooperation before.
Vermeulen (2013) concurred with Holt (1998) that attention should be paid to reliability and
competence of the contractors. Additionally, Holt et al. (1995) argued that choice of
contractor should be made on value for money, rather than accepting the lowest bid.
However, the above literature shows a different perception over the attributes required for
selecting a contractor.
Critical Success Attributes
Cooke-Davies (2002) identified 12 critical factors to project success, he first categorised
these 12 factors into three major areas i.e. project management success, individual project
success and the final category being corporate success. Belassi and Tukel (1996) maintain a
similar categorization whereby they identified factors and grouped them according to their set
of factors which were, factors related to project managers‘ performance, factors related to the
organization, factors related to team members and environmental factors. Alzahrani and
Emsley (2013) found that critical success factors that greatly impact on the success of
construction projects were safety and quality, past performance, environment, management
and technical aspects, resources, organisation, experience, size/type of previous projects and
finance.
Gudienė et al. (2013) through an evaluation of critical success factors for construction
projects in Vilnius, Lithuania found ten factors namely: experience of project management;
project value; experience of project manager; technical capabilities of project manager;
experience of contractor, project size; competence of project team members; clear and
realistic goals; decision making effectiveness of projects management and technical
capability of project management. Cooke-Davies (2002) explored data from 136 European
projects that were executed between 1994 and 2000 by a total of 23 organisations and the
identified 12 factors critical to project success. These factors were then categorized in three
major areas namely: project management success; individual project success; and corporate
success.
37
Chua et al. (1999) identified critical success factors which they categorised into four factors:
project characteristics, contractual agreement, project participants and interactive process.
Some of the critical attributes are: capability of contractor key personnel, competency of
contractor proposed team, contractor team turnover rate, contractor top management support,
contractor track record and contractor level of service. Al-Tmeemy et al. (2011) identified
thirteen critical success factors for building projects in Malaysia from the contractor‘s
perspective, namely: cost; time; quality; safety; achieving scope; customer satisfaction;
technical specifications; functional requirements; market share; competitive advantage;
reputation; revenue and profits, and benefit to stakeholders. Alzahrani and Emsley (2013)
identified nine main factors namely: safety and quality; past performance; environment;
management and technical aspects; resource; organisation; experience; size/type of previous
projects; and finance. However, based on this discussion there is no consensus of the
attributes that influence project success outcome in the construction in South Africa, hence a
critical gap in this study.
Problem Statement Despite the importance of the construction industry, client‘s dissatisfaction in terms of
quality, time and cost of the project might not to be willing to invest their capitals into a
sector that yields unsatisfactory returns, hence choosing to invest in other sectors of the
economy which promise satisfactory returns on their investments. This can therefore affect
the sustainability of the construction industry reducing company profit levels and jobs
opportunities. Furthermore, coupled with these problems, literature suggests that there is no
consensus of the critical attributes that can lead to project success. In order to achieve the
stated problem, the following specific research questions were posited:
What are the critical factors that prevent contractors from achieving successful
construction projects?
What factors would lead a contractor to be awarded a construction project?
What attributes are critical to achieve a successful construction project?
Research Methodology
The research philosophy of the study was positivist, adopting a deductive approach. Based on
the research philosophy and approach adopted in this study, the review led to the
identification of factors that will hinder contractors from achieving successful projects,
criteria for selecting contractors and attributes that will enable projects to be a success. The
use of structured questionnaire survey in an in-depth exploration of the constructs underlying
the subject matter of the research was therefore used. Creswell (1994) described a survey as a
quantitative or numeric description of some fraction of the population – the sample, which
enables researchers to generalize their findings from a sample of respondents to a population
within the limitations of the sampling method. A random sample was used where the
researchers randomly selected the sample members to conform to some or other criterion in
this case construction industry stakeholders i.e. consultants and contractors. The
questionnaires were distributed via email, and drop and collect method. This was to increase
the response rate of the participants as previous studies have reported that response rate for
surveys are normally very low Kongtip et al. (2008). A total of 75 questionnaires were
distributed of which 55 were returned, this represented 73.3% return rate which was higher
than the one suggested by Kongtip et al. (2008). However, a total of 50 questionnaires were
usable. The questionnaires were completed anonymously; therefore the result and the
presentation of this report cannot harm the respondents or their organization in any way.
Furthermore, the sample size was sufficient to meet the statistical test requirements for group
38
statistical testing. The data was analyzed using excel 2010 to compute the descriptive
statistics i.e. percentages, means and standard deviation. The likert-scale questions are
discussed based on Mean Score using an interval scale. In order to achieve the intervals, the
difference between the upper and lower ends of the used scale is 4.0 since there are five
points. Each range can be equated to 0.80 because the extent of the range is determined by a
division between 4.00 and 5 (4/5). This approach has been adopted in previous studies of
Emuze et al., (2011). However, in the current study the intervals are as stated. The meaning
of the intervals will change based on the questions asked by the researchers:
> 4.21 ≤ 5.00 Strongly agree; > 3.41 ≤ 4.20 Agree; > 2.61 ≤ 3.40 Neutral; > 1.81 ≤ 2.60
Disagree; > 1.00 ≤ 1.80 Strongly disagree
Findings and Discussions
The result in Table 1 indicates that 76% were male, while 24 % were female. The
stakeholders included 26% quantity surveyors; 18% were construction manager; 18% project
managers; 10% were for engineers; 10% were architects, 10% construction project managers
and 8% were other professional. The educational qualifications 40% of respondents had
Degrees; 34% Post-Matric Diploma or certificate; 14% Post-Graduate Degrees; 10% Grade
12 (Matric); and 2 % Grade 11 or lower; and none of the respondents had Doctorates.
Table 1: Demography of the respondents
Gender Frequency Percentage
Male 38 76.0
Female 12 24.0
Profession
Architects 5 10.0
Construction managers 9 18.0
Construction project managers 5 10.0
Engineers 5 10.0
Project managers 9 18.0
Quantity surveyors 13 26.0
Others 4 8.0
Continued Table 1: Demography of the respondents Highest qualification Frequency Percentage
Grade 11 or lower 1 2.0
Grade 12 or Matric 5 10.0
Post-matric diploma or Certificate 17 34.0
Baccalaureate Degrees 20 40.0
Masters‘ degree 7 14.0
Doctoral degree 0 0.0
Factors Preventing Contractors from Achieving Project Success
Table 2 indicates the respondents‘ perception on the main factors that contribute to
unsuccessful construction projects, with a mean score ranging from 1 to 5, in a 5-point likert
scale of influence. It can be indicated that financial problem, mismanagement and resource
shortfall were deemed to be influential in exacerbating project success as the mean scores
were in the band of >3.41≤4.20. Unfavourable government policies and unforeseen
circumstances were deemed to somewhat influence project success as the mean scores were
in the band of >2.61≤3.40. It can be argued that unforeseen circumstances e.g. bad weather
does not seem to deter the success of the project.
39
Table 2: Main causes of unsuccessful construction projects
Factors MS St. dev. Rank
Financial problems (client‘s financial capacity, late payment, unreliable source
of finance)
4.00 1.12 1
Mismanagement (consultants‘ and contractors‘ acts of omission or commission) 3.94 1.04 2
Resources problems (human, equipment, and material unavailability) 3.56 1.28 3
Unfavourable economic conditions (inflation, increase in building material cost,
corruption)
3.30 1.22 4
Client organisational influences (unclear client‘s brief, poor client‘s
collaboration)
3.24 1.25 5
Project characteristics (scale and complexity of the project, site characteristics) 3.10 1.22 6
Social cultural factors (strikes, crimes, robbery) 3.08 1.35 7
Unfavourable government policies (Increase of government taxes, compliance
to BEE requirement)
3.04 1.03 8
Unforeseen circumstances (e.g. heavy rainfall) 2.68 1.24 9
MS=Mean Score; Stdev. = standard deviation
Critical Selection Criteria to award contracts to Contractors
The results in Table 3 indicate that, the first four attributes are considered to be very
important in selecting a contractor i.e. good quality of work by the contractor; vast contactor
experience; Contractors‘ past performance and experience with the type of project. These
four factors achieved mean score in the band of >4.21≤5.00. Furthermore, recommendations
from other project managers, clients or friends with whom they had a successful cooperation
before was ranked second last with a mean score of 3.52. Lowest bid for the tender was the
least ranked with a mean score of 2.40, which suggests that it is somewhat unimportant as it
was in the band of >1.81≤2.60.
Table 3: Selection criteria
Selection criteria factors MS St. dev. Rank
Good quality of work by the contractor 4.52 0.68 1
Vast contractor experience (including competence and skills) 4.50 0.71 2
Contractor past performance 4.34 0.77 3
Experience with type of project 4.30 0.76 4
Contractor reputation 4.10 0.91 5
The project delivery time achieved 4.10 0.89 5
Contractors ‘finances ( assets, plants, machines, and machines available at
their disposal)
4.08 0.88 6
Capability of managing risks in a project 4.02 0.80 7
Past experience with the contractor 3.74 0.94 8
Based on recommendations from other project managers, clients, or friends
with whom they had a successful cooperation before
3.52 1.09 9
The lowest bidder for the tender 2.40 1.31 10
Critical Attributes Leading to Project Success
The result in Table 4 posits a strong agreement of 10 attributes of management organization
and involvement these are; proper planning; good leadership quality; effective monitoring
and communication and having a work program are imperative attributes of management to
ensure project success as the mean score were in between the band of >4.21≤5.00. The
40
respondents strongly agreed that financial attributes i.e. payment guarantee by the client and
cash flow forecast being good were necessary for project success.
Table 4: Critical success attributes
Management organization and involvement MS Stdev Rank
Proper planning 4.50 0.68 1
Good leadership quality 4.40 0.67 2
Effective monitoring and communication (feedback by the project team
members)
4.40 0.76 2
Having a work program 4.36 0.66 4
Top management support & commitment of all parties to the project 4.34 0.77 5
Experience of technical personnel 4.34 0.87 5
Risk management 4.30 0.84 7
Management capability 4.24 0.80 8
Feasibility studies before the project begins 4.24 0.89 8
The project documentation has enough information 4.22 0.79 10
Knowledge of particular construction methods 4.22 0.84 10
Good site organisation 4.18 0.66 12
Having an organizational structure 4.06 0.89 13
Technical personnel training 3.98 0.80 14
Up-to-date technology utilization 3.72 0.93 15
Financial Mean Stdev Rank
Payment guarantee by the client 4.38 0.85 1
Cash flow forecast is good 4.24 0.77 2
Having a good credit history 3.96 0.83 3
Having a good turn over 3.94 0.84 4
Past performance Mean Stdev Rank
No failure to have completed a contract 3.98 1.00 1
No contract time overruns in the past project 3.58 0.99 2
No contract cost overruns in the past project 3.58 1.05 2
Past record of conflict and disputes 3.40 1.18 3
Experience Mean Stdev Rank
Size of past project completed 4.20 0.81 1
The type of past project completed 4.10 0.86 2
Length of time in business 4.06 0.89 3
Experience in the region 3.64 1.01 4
Quality management Mean Stdev Rank
Quality control program is adequate in the project 4.20 0.67 1
Having a quality policy in the organization 4.12 0.77 2
Ensuring quality assurance program in the organization 4.08 0.75 3
Resource Mean Stdev Rank
Availability of resources as planned throughout the project duration 4.28 0.73 1
Having appropriate skilled workers 4.26 0.90 2
Adequate plants, machines, trucks, etc. 4.10 0.76 3
Efficient allocation of resources (distributing available resources in a correct
manner)
4.08 0.63 4
Training the human resources in the skill demanded in the project 3.98 0.74 5
Safely, Health and Environmental Mean Stdev Rank
Usage of personal protective Equipment (boots, helmet, eye protection, etc.) 4.14 0.99 1
Health and safety records 4.08 0.88 2
Environmental plan during construction 3.84 0.93 3
Waste disposal during construction 3.82 0.98 4
Use of sustainable materials 3.66 1.15 5
Recycling and reuse of building materials waste 3.28 1.20 6
41
The result on experience factor indicates that size of past project completed; type of past
project completed and length of time in business and experience in the region the mean score
were in the band of >3.41≤4.20 suggesting a general consensus of agreement. There was
agreement on attributes related to quality management; i.e. quality control program, having a
quality policy in the organization and ensuring quality assurance program in the organization.
The results on resources factor revealed that, availability of resources as planned throughout
the project duration; having appropriate skilled workers were strongly endorsed as necessary
attributes of project success. The results further indicated and agreement of four attributes
related to safety, health and environmental factor to be necessary for project success. These
attributes were; usage of personal protective equipment, health and safety, environmental
plan during construction and use of sustainable materials. However, recycling and reuse of
building materials waste was in the range of >2.61≤3.40, positing the respondents were
neutral in their perception.
Conclusions and Further Study
This study has identified the key barriers to successful project outcome to be finance
problems, mismanagement, and resources problems. Furthermore, it can be inferred that
stakeholders that are interested in project success should endeavour to focus on proper
planning; ensure payment guarantee by the client; no failure in previous contract; size of past
project completed; ensure quality control program is adequate in the project; availability of
resources as planned throughout the project duration; usage of personal protective equipment.
Finally, contractors should be selected in relation to good quality of work, vast experience,
and contractor past performance, experience with the type of project, contractor reputation,
the project delivery time achieved, contractors‘ finances, capability of managing risks in a
project, past experience with the contractor. This finding contributes to the current body of
knowledge in construction management. Further study is advocated, to determine the causal
relationship between the critical success factors identified and the project success outcome.
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44
Project and construction managers’ leadership
characteristics in the South African construction industry M Liphadzi and CO Aigbavboa
Department of Construction Management,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
The construction industry is different from other industries due to its unique characteristics.
Moreover, construction projects involve different individuals and organizations which are all
gathered to achieve a specific task at a specific time. However, South African construction
projects sometimes face challenges relating to quality and cost overruns. This challenges can
also be attributed to ineffective leadership in the South African construction industry.
Therefore, it is important to evaluate leadership in the South African construction industry.
Effective leadership can improve construction productivity, where its outcomes include
effectiveness, satisfaction, and project success. The main objective of the study is to identify
leading characteristics of construction and project managers in the South African construction
industry which influence the success of construction projects. The data used in this research
were derived from both primary and secondary sources. The secondary data was collected via
a detailed review of related literature. The primary data was collected through a well
structured questionnaire aimed at 150 projects and construction managers in the South
African construction industry, 110 questionnaires were received (73% response rate). Data
was analysis using statkon SPSS software, whereby frequecises and descriptives was
attained. Findings from the study indicate that the main leading characteristics which
influence the success of construction projects include monitoring for results, problem solving
and informed judgment, team building, initiative, influencing, communication, visioning,
planning and goal setting, time management, sense of responsibility, empowerment,
discipline, ethics, positive expectations, conceptualization, and conflict resolution. Based on
the outcomes of this study it is clear that leadership characteristics of a project and
construction manager are important, to establish success from a construction project.
Keywords:
Construction, Leadership, Management, Success, South Africa
Introduction
Leadership is one of the most important and essential factors in good project and construction
management, and leadership can be seen as the art of influencing others to achieve desired
results. According to Walker (1996), leadership is defined as the manner in which the project
managers and construction managers conduct themselves in their role, in order to obtain the
best performance from the people they are managing. Leaders guide behaviours by setting the
vision, direction and the key processes; in other words, leadership has a large influence on the
whole project process, including the actions of others. It is important to note that South
African construction companies do face problems, and can often be traced to the project
leadership. Some of them may have insufficient competencies or their traits may not fit with
the nature of their work. Besides, they may be using inappropriate leadership styles in dealing
with subordinates on construction projects. This leadership problem can lead to cost overruns
and bad construction quality.
45
Leaders should have unique characteristics for them to be successful. According to Jarad
(2012), leadership characteristic is a distinguishing feature or quality that a leader possesses.
Nowadays, construction companies search for professionals who have better management
and leadership skills rather than technical skills since these companies focus on project
management systems (Toor and Ofori, 2008). Although experience and technical skills are
important in engineering and construction, the critical skills that a successful project manager
need are not technical. Leadership and management skills can help the project manager to
achieve the objectives of the project (Benator and Thumann, 2003). Moreover, leadership
skills are considered as a very important key to the success of a company and very important
condition for the success of project management. The success of projects depends on
competencies, personalities, skills and leadership styles (Ogunlana, 2008). Herbert et al.
(1991) even stated that cost saving of as much as 10% through a well-qualified manager or
leader is possible. However, little attention has been given with regard to what characterizes
an effective leader in the construction industry. Goodwin (1993) stresses the importance of
effective leadership; he further points out the skills and characteristics required by project and
construction managers. This paper contains discussions on the theory of leadership and
leadership characteristics of project and construction managers in the construction industry.
Moreover, the aim of the paper is to investigate the leadership characteristics of project
leaders in the South African construction industry. The paper starts with an overview of
leadership and leadership traits in the construction industry, followed by the presentation of
the methodology and the findings from literature before conclusion and recommendations are
drawn.
Leadership and construction – Overview
The construction industry has a greater need for leadership than arguably any other industry.
Many reasons support this notion and it is evident in the nature of the construction projects,
and constructed products (Hillebrandt, 2000). Undoubtedly, construction projects are large
and technically complex and they involve a combination of specialized skills. Thus, the teams
are not only large but are also multi-disciplinary and the members are from several different
construction disciplines and this makes leadership important in this industry. Project
management and Construction management was developed in the construction and
engineering fields in order to improve planning and cost controls (Arendse, 2013). Moreover
history shows that the construction industry mainly operated in a context of management
being managers instead of leaders and there is a continuing controversy about the difference
between leadership and management. It is obvious that a person can be a leader without being
a manager and a person can be a manager without being a leader. Price (2009) stated that
when we are studying the leadership styles of managers in the construction industry, it may
become relevant to distinguish between leadership and management. Moreover construction
professionals or managers are of the opinion that their focus should be on the completion of
tasks. They are oriented towards achieving this goal of finishing their tasks on time and
within budget. Leaders, on the other hand are more concerned towards how they can
accomplish the task. Goetsch and Davis (2006) distinguish the leaders from the managers by
saying that managers focus on systems whereas the leaders focus on people. Even more
distinctive feature is that managers take the short view whereas the leaders take the long
view. Moreover construction and project managers in the construction industry are
responsible for the productivity of the project members; they should maintain cohesion in the
project. Hence, they should be leaders who can motivate and inspire construction workers
within the given projects. This is because leadership is considered to be good if it is designed
to accomplish the goal or mission of an organization which is done through project team
46
leading and project time managing, within budget conclusion and to a high quality, and with
a satisfied customer (Jarad, 2012:9).
Leadership traits in the construction industry
Jarad (2012) stated that, the true task of leadership involves the ability to make change
happen. Although multitudes of research have been done on what makes an effective leader,
there appears to be no guaranteed consensus. Essentially outstanding leaders become a fine
balance between traits, abilities, behaviours, sources of power, and aspects of the situation.
The term trait has been the source of considerable ambiguity and confusion in the literature,
referring sometimes and variously to personality, temperaments, dispositions, and abilities, as
well as to any enduring qualities of the individual, including physical and demographic
attributes (Bass, 1990). Leadership traits of the project leader are important to push team
members to pass their own self-interests then their performance will be enhanced. According
to Jarad (2012), leadership characteristics build on the basic management skills by adding
motivation and advanced problem solving skills. Researchers further suggested that different
leadership traits would be appropriate for different types of project (Jarad, 2012). However,
to understand the behaviour and traits of a leader, one needs to look at their innate
characteristics. Most significant are energy level, physical stamina and stress tolerance. High
energy and stress tolerance help to deal with the fast pace and often chaotic events of today‘s
business. Humility, courage, integrity, humour, passion, compassion; and wisdom are the
leadership traits that were suggested by Barker and Coy‘s (2003) as important. Kirkpatrick
and Locke (1991) suggested that the elements of leadership trait are drive; desire to lead;
honesty and integrity; self-confidence and knowledge of the business (Ogunlana, 2008). To
this end, the different traits are discussed in detail below. Traits that have been identified
include:
Communication
Communication is the ability of a project leader to listen, persuade, and understand what
others mean by their behaviour. Jarad (2012) noted that it is important for project leaders to
have the communication trait.
Dominance
Successful leaders want to be managers and to take charge. However, they are not overly
bossy and they do not use a bullying style (Lussier and Achua, 2004).
Self-confidence
Leaders with self-confidence display assurance about their abilities and foster confidence
among followers. Self-confidence influences individual goals, efforts and task persistence.
Without strong self-confidence, leaders are less likely to attempt to influence followers to
take on difficult tasks and to set challenging objectives for themselves and followers (Price,
2009).
Sensitivity to others
According Lussier and Achua (2004), being sensitive towards others, refers to understanding
group members as individuals, what their position on issues is and how best to communicate
with them and also influence them. To be sensitive to others requires empathy and the ability
to place oneself in another person‘s position, to see things from others‘ point of view.
47
Problem solving and informed judgment
Problem solving is the ability to analyse adverse conditions or conflict, differentiate root
causes, and the capability to find out a practical solution, and then implement it. Elements of
problem solving include problem definition, and decision making for problems that have
already occurred. To be an effective problem solver, it is important to differentiate between
causes and symptoms (Jarad, 2012). According to Bass (1990), successful leaders come in a
wide variety of personal characteristics such as their ability to relate to people in groups or
individually. Strong leadership is necessary to be able to establish construction performance,
direction and to cope with change. A construction and project manager should internalize
different facets of character in order to handle different people in different situations.
Moreover an effective manager has to modify, change or adapt his natural character to suit
different purposes and conditions.
Planning
One of the critical abilities that contribute to effective leadership is planning skills. Abilities
of planning include judgment, perceptual foresight, conceptual foresight, ordering,
elaboration, and adaptive flexibility (Marta et al., 2005).
Flexibility
Flexibility refers to the ability to adjust to different situations. Leaders need to stay ahead of
the immense changes in the world and the pace of change. Without flexibility, leaders would
be successful only in limited situations that fit their style of leadership (Lussier & Achua,
2004).
Integrity
Integrity refers to behaviour that is honest and ethical, making a person trustworthy.
Trustworthiness is an important part of business success. Followers must trust the leader.
Unless one is perceived to be trustworthy, it would be difficult to retain the loyalty of
followers or to obtain cooperation and support from peers and superiors. (Emad, 2014)
Visioning
According to Jarad (2012), visioning is a process which has a number of phases that includes
creation, improvement, and renewal of a vision. Jarad (2012) further states that visioning is a
continuous process and it must be integrated in an on-going process of strategic planning.
Researchers suggest that the goals of visioning include giving a sense of future to the
organisation, guiding to decision making and connecting to the values (Shelbourn et al.,
2003).
Research Methodology
Research methodology considers the context of the research and the desired results in order to
achieve meaningful research outcomes. Moreover, the selection of an appropriate research
design involves several steps, beginning with identifying the problem, purpose of the study
and in depth literature review. This research adopted a quantitative approach which involved
the use of a questionnaire. Moreover, the data used in this paper were derived from both
primary and secondary sources. Burns and Grove (1993) describe quantitative research as a
formal, systematic process that describes and test relationships and examines causes among
variables. In addition, Polit and Hungler (1993) were of the view that quantitative research is
48
a survey to obtain information from a sample of people by means of self-report, whereby
people respond to a sequence of questions posed to them by the researcher. The primary data
was obtained through the survey method which used purposive sampling, while the
secondary data was derived from the review of literature and archival records. The primary
data was obtained through the use of a structured questionnaire survey. The questionnaire
survey led to the compilation of the primary data. However, questionnaires were decided
upon for this study for the following reasons: they require less time and energy to administer
and they offer the possibility of anonymity because the respondent‘s names are not required
on the completed questionnaires. The format of the questionnaire had a section that identifies
effective leadership characteristics in the South African construction industry. Respondents
had to select important leadership traits in the construction industry, the selection was
translated into frequencies and percentages and then ranked. This was distributed to a
collective total of 150 projects and construction managers in the South African construction
industry, Gauteng. Out of the 150 questionnaires sent out, 111 were received back
representing a 74% response rate. This was considered adequate for the analysis based on the
assertion by Moser and Kalton (1971) that the result of a survey could be considered as
biased and of little value if the return rate was lower than 30–40%. However any research
based on measurement must be concerned with the accuracy and dependability. A reliability
coefficient demonstrates whether the test designer was correct in expecting a certain
collection of items to yield interpretable statements about individual differences (Cronbach,
1951). Cronbach's alpha above 0.7 is acceptable for analysis (George & Shamas, 2012).
Description of reliabilities of all scales used in the study indicated a Cronbach Alpha of
above 0.7. The data presentation and analysis made use of frequency distributions and
percentages of all the respondents.
Findings and Discussion
Findings from the 111 usable questionnaires revealed that 52% of the respondents were
project managers and 48% of the respondents were construction managers. Furthermore,
69.5% of the respondents are currently involved in projects in the range 0-5 projects, 16.2%
of the respondents are involved in projects in the range of 6-10.
Leadership traits in the South African construction industry
It is evident from table 1 that 77% of the respondents said communication skills was the first
ranked leadership characteristic in the South African construction industry. Of the
respondents 67.3% revealed that having vision was the second ranked leadership
characteristic; 64.5% selected passion (R=3); 62.7% selected confidence as an important
leadership characteristic (R=4); 58.2% selected creativity (R=5); 53.6% chose honest and
reliability (R=6). Being knowledgeable, organized and objective oriented was selected by
52% of the respondents (R=7). Having construction experience was ranked fourteenth (%
=44). Followed by decisiveness (42.7%; R=15), self-discipline (41.8%, R=16), Firm minded
and foresight were ranked twentieth (%=36.4), however being a risk taker was ranked last
(30%; R=22).
Findings supports literature reviewed by Jarad (2012) were it is indicated that leadership
traits of a construction project leaders are important to push team members to pass their own
self-interests, therefore their performance will be enhanced. Furthermore, Jarad (2012) stated
that leadership characteristics should build on the basic management skills by adding
motivation and advanced problem solving skills. Jarad (2012) further noted that
communication skills, time management and self-confidence are important leadership traits in
49
the construction industry. According to Bass (1990), successful leaders come in a wide
variety of personal characteristics such as their ability to relate to people in groups or
individually. Strong leadership is necessary to be able to establish performance direction and
to cope with change. A manager should internalize different facets of character in order to
handle different people in different situations.
Table 1: Importance of Performance Parameter in Construction
Leadership Characteristic Frequency /
Percentage Rank
Communication skills N=85 (77.3%) 1
Vision N=74 (67.3%) 2
Passion N=71 (64.5%) 3
Confidence N=69 (62.7%) 4
Creativity N=64 (58.2%) 5
Honesty and Reliability N=59 (53.6%) 6
Knowledge N=57 (52%) 7
Organized N=57 (52%) 7
Objective N=57 (52%) 7
Influence N=55 (50%) 8
Strategic vision N=55 (50%) 8
Integrity N=54 (49.1%) 10
Self-control N=52 (47.3%) 11
Sense of direction N=51 (46.4%) 12
Inspiration N=50 (45%) 13
Open to change N=50 (45%) 13
Experienced N=49 (44%) 14
Decisiveness N=47 (42.7%) 15
Self-discipline N=46 (41.8%) 16
Action-Oriented N=45 (40.9%) 17
Efficient N=42 (38.2%) 18
Not biased N=41 (37.3%) 19
Firmness N=41 (37.3% 19
Foresight N=40 (36.4%) 20
Fair-minded N=40 (36.4%) 20
Charismatic N=37 (33.6%) 21
Risk Taker N=33 (30%) 22
Conclusion and Further Research
The construction industry is different from other industries due to its unique characteristics.
Moreover a construction project is consisted of a diversity of individuals and organizations
which are all gathered to achieve specific task at a specific time. Therefore, it is necessary for
the project or construction managers to be effective leaders and to lead the project for
success. This paper has explored leadership characteristics by construction and project
managers. Moreover, Literature further revealed that there are various important leadership
traits that project leaders have in the construction industry, this includes, self-confidence,
high energy, stability, planning, integrity and time management. In this research, analysis on
dominant leadership characteristics was done, were findings revealed that communication
skills is an important trait in the South African construction industry followed by vision,
50
passion, self-discipline, confidence, creativity, honesty and reliability, knowledgeable,
integrity, inspiration and decisiveness.
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52
A Project Management Approach to Improve Housing
Delivery B Botha
1 , Roy Cumberlege
2, and Andrew Johnson
2
1Department of Construction Management,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University,
[email protected] 2Department of Quantity Surveying,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University,
Abstract:
The ineffective use of project management principles in the Department of Human
Settlements (DoHS) is detrimental to the delivery of social housing in South Africa. The
study investigates the project management effort of the DoHS under the key areas of project
management competence and the Project Management Office (PMO). The questionnaires
were emailed to the sample consisting of private and public sector employees involved with
the Eastern Cape DoHS‘s (hereafter referred to as the ―Department‖) project team. The
competencies of project managers currently employed were evaluated along with the
performance of project management office to determine the departments‘ project
management effort. The study identified that the project managers responsible for facilitating
the project management effort are not competent. The findings highlighted the existence of a
PMO, but regarded the PMO as ineffective as tasks fail to achieve optimal performance. This
study identifies two aspects contributing to the project management effort: the incompetent
project managers and inefficient PMO. These aspects are core issues that need to be
addressed in order to improve the Department‘s project management effort.
Keywords:
Competency, Housing, Project Management, South Africa
Introduction
More than half of Eastern Cape households have no formal housing and are subject to
inadequate living conditions (Eastern Cape Department of Human Settlements, 2011). The
housing backlog and the current number of households within the Eastern Cape requiring
adequate housing is above 750 000 and is still increasing (Songeni, 2011). The priority focus
areas of the Department included the accelerated delivery of housing opportunities with the
upgrading of informal settlements with 16726 houses. The planned output for the first quarter
(April to June 2012) was set at 3216 houses but the Department only achieved the delivery of
1258 houses, representing poor performance and a further backlog (EC DoHS, 2012).
The Minister of Human Settlements cited the lack of capacity, referring mainly to project
management experience, and poor management skills as major issues contributing to the lack
of housing delivery within provinces (Sexwale, 2010). The shortage of skills in the local
departments responsible for commissioning and controlling facilities is also a major factor
that manifest as delays (Holtzhausen and Naidoo, 2011). The Department has set out on
building up the capacity with the implementation of a revised Service Delivery Model (SDM)
resulting in the restructuring of senior managers in the Department according to the
competencies and passion of individuals. The project management effort of the Department
53
was enhanced with the establishment of a Project Management Office primarily focused on
reviewing the technical systems, procedures and tools; trouble shoot on blocked programmes
and projects; and assisting the Department in establishing a permanent project management
unit (ECDoHS, 2012). The deliverables of this paper is to determine the project management
effort of the Department by evaluating the competency of project managers employed by the
Department, and the efficiency of the Project Management Office.
Literature Review
Project management is a specialised approach to managing the efforts of the organisation
having finite beginning and end points, a specific budget and with customer-specified
performance criteria (Taylor, 2006). When considering the project management competence,
it is important to breakdown the term ―competence‖ into its various component parts for a
complete understanding. Past perceptions of competence encompassed that individuals were
in possession of knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviours that contribute to an effective
performance of a project management task or role (Crawford, 2003).
The traditional approach of employers when appointing competent staff was to focus on the
technical qualifications related to their job and their experience at performing the same or
similar job (Crawford, 2003). The development of the attribute-based approach to
competency supplemented the traditional approach and this approach focuses on the
knowledge (qualifications), skills (ability to perform task) and the core personality
characteristics (motives, traits, and self-concept) to determine the competency of the person.
The United Kingdom (UK) adapted a performance based approach defines an acceptable
standard of demonstrable performance to which the individual must adhere to. According to
the performance based approach, competence is defined as the demonstrable performance in
accordance with occupational, professional and organisational competency standards
(Crawford, 2003
In today‘s organisation the required competency of project managers follows an integrated
model approach focusing on the skills the person can contribute to the job, the personal
characteristics influencing the person‘s capability to do a job, and the person‘s demonstrable
performance of project management activities. According to Crawford (2003), this approach
can be broken down into three major competencies, namely:
Input Competencies: consist of the knowledge, skills and abilities that a person can
contribute to a job.
Personal Competencies: refer to the personal characteristics that influence a person‘s
capability to do a job.
Output Competencies: refers to a person‘s demonstrable performance of project
management activities to the level expected in employment.
Project Management Office (PMO)
Project management has become an essential role in the management of organisations in most
fields of human activity (Aubry, Muller, Hobbs and Blomqist, 2010). One of the major
significant developments within the field of project management in recent years has been the
implementation of the Project Management Office (PMO) within the organisation making it
an essential component to the project management effort. The Project Management Institute
(PMI) (2008) defines the PMO as: ―An organisational body or entity assigned various
responsibilities related to the centralised and coordinated management of those projects under
54
its domain. The responsibilities of the PMO can range from providing project management
support functions to actually being responsible for the direct management of the project‖.
This definition highlights that the PMO is highly beneficial to project managers in their
individual effort, and to the organisations project management effort as a whole.
Artto, Kulvik, Poskela and Turkulainen (2011) divide the tasks of the PMO into five
distinctive categories:
Managing practices: focuses on developing standard procedures, information systems and
tools to assist in project management.
Administrative support: the PMO undertakes the responsibility for some of the project
manager‘s tasks in order to reduce their work load or to benefit from the expertise and
economies of scale in the PMO.
Monitoring and controlling projects: is a crucial task of the PMO involving the collecting
reports, conducting post reviews, auditing projects and the allocation of resources.
Training and consulting: develops the organisational culture with regards to project
management, consulting, mentoring and training of employees.
Evaluating, analysing and choosing projects: involves all methods of managing the
organisations portfolio.
Research Methodology
For the purposes of this study questionnaires were emailed to respondents as a basis for
collecting data from the sample. The sample was assessed using quantitative research
techniques where the use of a constructed questionnaire allows for the uniform collection of
data. A questionnaire consisting of three sections was used with section a consisting of
questions relating to the demographic profile of respondents. Section B consisted of questions
relating to the competence of project managers in the Departments project team while section
C focused on the various tasks of a successful PMO. The questionnaire was designed to
identify any flaws in the competency of the project managers, and to reveal the efficiency of
the PMO within the Department. Sixty-eight questionnaires (68) were distributed to
participants involved with the Eastern Cape Department of Human Settlement. These
participants consisted of the employees working within the department and the private
consultants employed to work alongside the department. A response rate of 40% was
achieved which is adequate for the study.
Findings and Discussion
The results pertaining to the demographic profile of the respondents reveal the ages are not
distributed equally and the most frequent age of the respondents ranged between 25-35 years
and 35-45 years with both categories representing 38% each. 24% of the respondents are
older than 45 years. More than half of the respondents (62%) were in possession of at least a
diploma as their highest qualification. Majority (43%) of respondents were qualified in the
engineering field. Other fields of study were architecture, quantity surveying, project
management, business and financial management. In addition, less than half (42%) of
respondents from the public sector were registered with a professional body while more than
half (62%) of the private sector respondents, were registered with a professional body.
Majority (71%) of respondents are working in the public sector. The remainder of the
respondents are from the private sector. Majority (76%) of respondents were in senior staff
positions. Most (62%) of the respondents had over 10 years of experience in the built
55
environment. Less than half (38%) of respondents have working experience in the
Department in excess of 15 years. Only 24% of respondents have working experience more
than 10 years but less than 15 years with the remainder of respondents working less than 10
years for the Department.
Competencies of the Project Manager
The competency of project managers was evaluated based on input competencies, personal
competencies and output competencies.
Input Competencies
In Table 1, majority of the respondents viewed the input competencies very high with an
overall mean of 4.13 (83%), a standard deviation of 0.73 indicating that responses had little
variance, and a mode of 4 that also highlights the importance of the input competencies. An
academic qualification was identified as the most important input competency with a mean of
4.58 (92%) and a standard deviation of 0.58 indicating low deviation in responses. The
respondents indicated that academic qualifications of a project manager are very important
with a mode of 5. Self-managed research was identified as the least important input
competency with a ―neutral‖ mean of 3.36 (67%) with a mode of 4 representing the majority
of responses. However the standard deviation of 0.99 indicates that the views on self-
managed research tended to vary amongst the respondents. This can also explain the
significant difference between the mean (3.36) and the mode (4) for this competency.
The majority of the respondents viewed the evidence of the Department project managers
input competencies rather low ranging from poor to neutral with an overall mean of 2.68%
(52%), a standard deviation of 0.80 indicating that views had little variance and a mode of 3
representing the bulk of the responses. Academic qualifications was identified as the most
evident input competency with a mean of 3.29 (66%) and a standard deviation of 0,69
indicating little deviation in responses. 46% of the respondents indicated that the academic
qualifications evident of project managers in the Department are fair with a mode of 3. The
study revealed that the respondents view that accreditation with professional bodies is the
least evident input competency amongst the project managers. The input competency of
―accreditation with professional bodies‖ reflected a ―poor‖ mean of 2.13 (43%) with a mode
of 2 representing the majority response of respondents. The standard deviation of 0.76
indicates little variance in this input competency.
Table 1: Input Competencies
56
Personal Competencies
Table 2 indicates the majority of the respondents viewed the input competencies very highly
with a resounding overall mean of 4.68 (94%), a standard deviation of 0,48 indicating that
there was only slight variance in responses, and a mode of 5 reflecting the majority of
responses.
All personal competencies were regarded as very important with all means > 4.50 (90%).
Communication was identified as the most important personal competency with a mean of
4,85 (97%) and a standard deviation of 0.36 indicating a slight deviation in responses. 85% of
the respondents indicated that the communication competency of a project manager is very
important with a mode of 5. Integrity was identified as the least important personal
competency out of the six, but it must be stressed that integrity was still regarded as very
important with a mean of 4.52 (90%), with little variance in responses (standard
deviation=0.65) and a mode of 5.
The study revealed that the respondent‘s view accountability as least evident amongst project
managers. The personal competency of accountability reflected a poor mean of 2.48 (50%)
with a mode of 3 representing the majority response. The standard deviation of 0.80 indicates
little variance in responses.
Table 2: Personal Competencies
Respondents viewed the output competencies ―very important‖ with a high overall mean of
4.65 (93%); a standard deviation of 0.48 indicating that there was only slight variance in
responses. The majority of the sample indicated the importance of output competencies with
a mode of 5. The output competencies were regarded as very important with all means > 4.30
(86%).
57
Table 3: Output Competencies
Project Budgeting was identified as most critical with a mean of 4,88 (98%) and a standard
deviation of 0,33 indicating a very slight deviation in responses. 88% of the respondents were
aligned with a mode of 5 indicating that they regard project budgeting by the project manager
as very important. Project planning and scheduling were also highly regarded with means of
4.85 (97%) and 4.80 (96%) respectively. Managing technology and tools was identified as
least important Integrity with a mean of 4.36 (87%), with standard deviation 0.57 and a mode
of 4. The study revealed that the respondents view that managing technology and tools as the
least evident output competency amongst the project managers. Managing technology and
tools reflected a ―poor‖ mean of 2.24 (45%) with a mode of 2. The standard deviation of 0.66
indicates little variance in this input competency. Evaluating and terminating projects was
another competency less evident in project managers with a poor mean of 2.28 (46%).
The results clearly indicate little evidence of project management competencies in the project
managers currently employed by the Department (Figure 1). The overall mean differences for
each component of project management competence were greater than 30% which indicates
project managers employed by the Department are incompetent (Figure1). Project managers
scored highest in the input competency category with a mean difference of 31% (Figure 1).
This is mainly due to the sample regarding these competencies as least important resulting in
a decreased mean difference. The personal and output competencies both had an equal mean
difference of 42% reflecting poor results for project managers (Figure 1). This highlights the
fact that the competencies may have the knowledge, skills and ability to do a job (input) but
they do not have the personal characteristics (personal) supporting their capabilities nor the
competencies reflecting the project manager‘s demonstrable performance (output) when
completing the tasks required of them.
58
83%
94% 93%
52% 52% 51%
31%
42% 42%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
InputCompetencies
PersonalCompetencies
OutputCompetencies
Re
spo
nse
Me
an
%Importance
Evidence
MeanDifference
Figure 1: Comparison of Importance and Evidence of Competencies
Project Management Office Tasks
The efficiency of the PMO was evaluated based on mean difference between the
―Importance‖ and ―Efficiency‖ of each PMO task based on the Table 4.
Table 4: Mean Difference Scale of PMO Tasks
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%
Excellent Good Fair Poor
Very
Poor
The results reveal that a PMO exists in the Department as respondents answered all questions
identified under the various PMO task categories. In Figure 2 it is clear that the respondents
view the PMO tasks as very important but regard the departments‘ performance of the tasks
as poor with a mean difference for all tasks greater than 30%.
Project managers scored highest in the ―Evaluating, analysing and choosing‖ category with a
mean difference of 32% (Figure 2, Table 4), meaning the Department performs poorly in
managing its portfolio. However the Department performs this task better than all other tasks.
The ―Monitoring and Controlling‖ category of PMO tasks was the worst performing with a
mean difference of 41% reflecting poor results for one of the more crucial tasks of the PMO
(Figure 2, Table 4). This is identified as a crucial task by Artto et al. (2011), as it involves the
collecting of reports, conducting post reviews, auditing and allocating resources to projects
which all have a significant influence on the project management effort. The Department
performed very poorly in the ―Training and Consulting‖ task with a mean difference of 40%
59
(Figure 2, Table 2). Therefore the Department is ineffective in developing the organisational
culture with regards to project management, consulting, mentoring and training of employees.
The tasks of providing ―Administrative support‖ and ―Managing practices‖ were also poorly
performed tasks with mean differences of 37% and 38% respectively (Figure 2). The PMO is
ineffective in providing support to project managers resulting in high workloads and poor
economies of scale. The standard procedures, information systems and tools in place are
ineffective in their effort to assist the project management effort.
Figure 2: Comparison of Importance and Efficiency of PMO
Conclusion and Further Research
The project management competencies were evaluated according to the importance and
evidence of the three competency categories based on an integrated competency model. The
study revealed that the importance of all three components was regarded highly. The
evidence of these competencies within the project managers currently employed in the
Department is poor. The study further identifies that project managers responsible for
facilitating the project management effort are incompetent which explains the poor
management of projects in the Department. This also has a detrimental influence on the
Department reaching its targets and reducing the social housing backlog.
The PMO is a support function to project managers and it is highly beneficial to promote the
effective use of this ―project management tool‖ in the Departments against an ever-increasing
housing backlog. For an enhanced management of projects the crucial issue of incompetent
project managers needs to be addressed. An enhanced project management effort is required
by the Department in order for substantial improvements in the housing backlog to occur.
The South African Council for the Project and Construction Management Profession
(SACPCMP) is the professional body that enforces the best practices of project managers in
South Africa. The Department does provide incentives to project managers who register with
the council, but these incentives can be increased in order for an increased benefit to project
managers who register as professionals with the SACPCMP.
The employment requirements for new project managers should be increased and should
include provisions for all three components of project management competencies and not
only focus on input competencies. The study further revealed that personal characteristics of
project managers are the main reasons for ineffective performances. The incorporation of an
60
effective PMO into the Department will reduce the workload of project managers by
providing administrative support to project managers. Training is required to educate and
promote the PMO to all members on the project team in order to identify various roles and
responsibilities of the various members.
References Artto, K., Kulvik, L., Poskela, J. and Turkulainen, V. (2011) The integrative role of the
project management office in the front end of innovation, International Journal of Project
Management, 29: 408-421.
Aubry, M., Muller, R., Hobbs, B. and Blomqist, T. 2010. Project management offices in
transition, International Journal of Project Management, 28: 766-778.
Crawford, L. 2003. People in Project Management. Burlington: Gower.
Holtzhausen, N. and Naidoo, G. 2011. Effective Governance as an Approach to Promote
Service Delivery by Local Government in South Africa: The Case for Soul City, Journal
of US-China Public Administration, 8(7):735-747.
Project Management Institute, 2008. A Guide to the Project Management Body of
Knowledge, 4th ed. PMI, Newton Square, PA.
Sexwale, T. 2010. Department of Human Settlement: Minister's budget speech at the
occasion of the human settlements budget vote, national assembly, Cape Town, 21 April
2011. Cape Town: Parliamentary Monitoring Group.
Songeni, E. 2011 Department of Human Settlements & Economic Development. 2011. 4th
quarter 2010/11 performance. Cape Town: Parliamentary Monitoring Group.
South Africa. Department of Human Settlements. 2007. National Housing Code.
South Africa. Eastern Cape Department of Human Settlements. 2011. Annual Performance
Plan.
South Africa. Eastern Cape Department of Human Settlements. 2012. First Quarter Report.
Taylor, J. 2006. A Survival Guide for Project Managers. New York: AMACOM.
61
Fundamental factors that trigger the shortfall of skilled
artisans in South African construction Iruka Anugwo
1 and Wayne Draai
2
1 Department of Construction Management,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa 2Department of Building and Human Settlement
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa
Abstract:
The purpose of this research survey is to unveil the underlying fundamental factors that
resulted in the skills crisis in South African construction industry. However, the research
methodology of this Study was quantitative survey method which was in the form of a
questionnaire survey. The population and sample size used was 300 and 150 respectively,
with a response rate of 18%. The respondents of this study were from the membership list
database of the GMBA (Gauteng Master Builders Association). This study finds the
following issues; poor performance of pupils in mathematics and science (pupils are the
supply sources of artisans); the learners' lack of access to practical experiment during
training; and lack of expansion of training institutions to local regions as the fundamental
factors that contributing the shortfall of skilled artisans in the South African construction
industry. Thus the salient findings confirmed that the industry finds it extremely difficult to
recruit competent artisans. Furthermore, the profiles of skilled artisans are insufficient to
meet the huge industrial demands. Importantly, the research have demonstrates a guiding
solution towards the artisans skills crisis in the construction industry. Crucially, the study
recommends that the entire stakeholders in the South African construction industry should
form collaboration to strategically develop programmes that would upgrade and expand the
existing training institutions, primary and secondary education system towards contemporary.
- and environmental changes of the South African construction landscape in order to promote
the attractiveness of the industry image and to raise the profile of skilled artisans in the
industry.
Keywords: Artisans, Construction, Skill, Training, South Africa
Introduction
The South African construction industry has been in a critical condition for decades due to
the shortfall of skilled artisans. This has placed the industry in a continuing battle to sustain
its numerous activities and opportunities. This confirmed the view of Siya (2012) that the
South African construction industry has witnessed chaos during the construction of power
stations and the controversial e-tolling systems, which required skilled foreign artisan at a
high cost. The extent of the artisan‘s shortage was so big that South Africa had to import
artisans to build its infrastructure. Siya (2012) further stated that recent studies reflected that
the average South African artisan was nearing retirement age at 55. The number of registered
apprentices in 1979 was 33,000 a number which has shrunk in this decade to about 3,000
apprentices. Thus, this phenomenon of shortage of skilled artisans can be associated with the
past government and institutional negligence towards skills development, quality training,
62
funding and fundamental factors, such as racial, gender inequality and educational crisis. This
work puts emphases on the empirical reality of the skills shortfall in the construction industry
and it also highlights how to develop a medium- and long-term approach in order to salvage
the menace around the shortage of skilled artisans in the building construction industry in
Gauteng, South Africa. Importantly, the construction industry plays a vital role in South
Africa‘s economic- and social development. It provides the physical infrastructure and
backbone for economic activity. It also provides employment on a large-scale (cidb, 2007).
Rogerson (1999) also argues that South African construction industry is a potential and
critical actor in post-apartheid reconstruction. The reasons include its linkages with others
sectors, its growth-generating characteristics and its potential for adopting labour-intensive
techniques for a wide range of products. In the light of this, the building construction sector
consists of many activities that demand some levels of contemporary skills, materials and
machineries.
The shortage of skilled artisans in South Africa is alarming and it has been admitted that there
were inconsistencies in ascertaining the scale of demand. However, it was generally accepted
that the country needed to drastically improve its production of artisans (Roodt and
Wildschut, 2012). South African construction industry is confronted with an acute short
supply of well qualified workers. This was repeatedly echoed in the media through
comments made from government agencies, union and employers (Jeffy, 2008; Rasool and
Botha, 2011). It is further highlighted by Jeffy (2008) and Rasool and Botha (2011) that the
impacts of skills shortages are negative. It has been perceived as a hindrance in South
Africa‘s ability to realise its economic potentials on a global platform and its targeted
economic growth of 6 % annum. The concern pertaining to the scarce skills shortage is
heightened by the fact that, apart from the planned mega-projects, existing construction and
engineering operations are working to capacity owing to expansion over the past five years.
This has resulted in a rise in costs and has had an impact on quality (cidb, 2007). Relating to
critical skill, the cidb also review that there was a significant shortage of experienced
qualified artisans in the construction industry. These shortages are threatening to stall service
delivery.
Literature Review
According to Jordaan and Barry (2009), South Africa had experienced extensive growth in all
industrial sectors. That has led to an increased demand in all levels of skilled human
resources including artisans (cidb, 2007). The Support Programme for Accelerated
Infrastructure Development (SPAID) (2007) states that the skills deficit appeared to have
been on a path where demand continued to outstrip supply as a result of the substantial
growth in infrastructural investment.
The Overview on shortfall of skilled artisans in South African construction
Rasool and Botha (2011) note that South Africa was suffering a debilitating skills shortage.
Not only was its own skills production system grossly inefficient, but the situation had been
worsened by skilled people leaving the country at an alarming rate. In addition, Jordaan and
Barry (2009) cautioned that other international organisations further exacerbated the South
African skills shortfall in that they recruited South African artisans who had been the product
of past learnership programmes, which were recognised as world class. At the time, relatively
high salaries had been offered by those international organisations and in conjunction with
the social issue of high crime rates, more skilled artisans were lost to overseas companies.
63
Van (2000) voiced a different perspective. He was of the opinion that the demand for skilled
workers had been acquiring a global dimension. Firms in developed countries of Australia,
New Zealand, Great Britain and Canada had been recruiting highly skilled South Africans
with high levels of vocational education and advanced occupational skills. In general terms,
the loss of skilled workers was referred to as the ―brain drain‖. Van further explained that the
movement also affected South Africa as thousands of skilled South Africans left the country
every year. Other factors that influenced people to consider emigration to other countries
included crime, affirmative action, Black economic empowerment, poor education standards
and inadequate government provisions for health care.
Thus, many research commentators saw the education- and training system as the
fundamental factors that bled and contributed towards the national skills crisis in South
Africa. Rasool and Botha (2011) state that the system was characterised by low educational
standards, inadequate provision for early childhood development, declining Grade 12 pass
rates, declining enrolments at FET colleges, lack of resources, under-qualified teachers, weak
management and poor teacher morale. High failure rates in schools, colleges and universities
offered little hope of addressing the skills shortages. The cidb (2007) there were evidence that
the graduation rate in construction and engineering - skills development had always lagged
behind increasing spending in construction. Whilst it was therefore reasonable to assume that
industry would have responded to meet the growth in skills demand, that growth phase
required substantive interventions involving a wide range of stakeholders. The cidb (2007)
further stated that an analysis of the supply of skills in learnerships, further education and
training (FET) and higher education and training (HET) sectors had shown that increasing
numbers of learners were entering training institutions. That in turn could have suggested that
the supply over the following five years would have adequately covered the expected
increased demand.
Together with the normal attrition rate, the low throughout ratios, lack of access to
experiential training for qualification purposes and non-accreditation of certain curricula, and
the changes in work processed, the ability of the supply pipeline to meet the required demand
was far from certain. Benjamin (2008) states that South Africa had come last in global studies
in literacy and reading, as well as in mathematics and science. In that regard South Africa,
had been outperformed by other African countries, e.g. Ghana; Botswana, Morocco and
Tunisia. Compared to other developing countries the number of South Africans completing
school was also below the norm. Only 30.9% of South African adults had completed high
school, compared to 69.8% of adults in developed countries. However, the Centre for
Development and Enterprise (CDE) (2007) lamented that together with the low achievement
rates, only 13% of learners had enrolled for science and 9% for mathematics at the higher-
grade level. This represented a decline in Grade 12 mathematics and science results between
1995 and 2001. Therefore; it reduced the supply of quality skills and the availability of
required talent. The economy could only grow if there were more educated people. In
addition to this, Rasool and Botha (2011) gave some insight into the performance in
mathematics and science in 2008. That situation was largely the result of the poor quality of
schooling for Black learners in the past. Poor results, particularly in mathematics and science,
compounded the problem. Therefore, many Black students who had entered tertiary
institutions were reluctant to pursue careers in the science- and technology fields.
According to Kraak (2004) made the crucial revelation that 42% of South African youth
(between 15 and 24 years of age) had abandoned their studies or vocational training and
entered the labour market. More than 60% of them had less than a Grade 12 qualification,
64
whilst 33% had nothing more than Grade 12. That was a grave concern as the weaknesses in
education and skills training institution were bound to affect their preparedness for the labour
market and to deprive them of actual employment opportunities. Rasool and Botha (2011)
estimated that about 1.1 million pupils had started Grade 1 every year. However, only 589
912 pupils wrote the Grade 12 examinations in 2008. That meant that half a million children
had dropped out of school. This situation has had an extensive effect on South Africa,
especially as far as their chances of employment were concerned. This issues remains a great
concern the pupils in science related discipline are the primary source of supply learners to
the training institutions.
The Impact of Challenges on Training and Supplying Artisans in South Africa
According to Janse van Rensburg et al. (2012) vocational-and occupational certification via
learnership and apprenticeship programmes were at the core of the new skills creation
system. However, the concern was to assess how effective those systems had been over the
previous five years. Janse van Rensburg et al (2012) further said that the policy concerns
around a skills crisis –that South Africa was not producing enough of the right levels and
kinds of skills to support global competitiveness and economic development – had intensified
over the previous five years, making the impact assessment by the Department of Labour
very timely. Morton (2009) posits concerns about the shortage of skilled operatives and the
recurring inadequacy of training throughout the century before. Despite several attempts by
government and the industry itself to resolve these problems, Marock (2008) reported that the
new learnership system and the revived apprenticeship system were inserted into a complex
and increasingly bureaucratized qualifications and quality assurance infrastructure. Those
were administered by Sector Education and Training Authority (SETAs) and were in actual
fact a set of newly created institutions. The capacity to drive skills development still had to be
developed. Janse van Rensburg et al. (2012) further explained that the SETAs had suffered
failures such as bureaucratic, rigid and inefficient management; low standards; a lack of
information on student needs and firm demand. In addition, they were also plagued by
corruption in a couple of sectors. Their capacity to conduct skills planning and demand
forecasting to inform sectorial and national strategies were generally not strong enough.
Taylor (2011) explains that the previous few years had seen the accumulation of evidence to
indicate that the majority of South African teachers knew little more about the subjects which
they taught than the curriculum expects of their children. The cidb (2007) pinpointed the
problem, when it report that, the quality of learners who were entering construction- and
engineering programmes was also recognized as a challenge to skills development. Academic
institutions often highlighted that the critical skills and attitudes of matriculates, irrespective
of their matric passes, were often unsuitable for the rigour required in the building
construction and engineering studies related in the training institutions. This mismatch
resulted in elevated attrition rates as students changed their studies mid-stream and
subsequently a low throughput rate was achieved in the building construction and engineering
related programmes. Kraak (2004) highlights that the South African economy experienced
accelerated growth after 2002. In essence, Rasool and Botha (2011) state that the structural
changes in the economy were exacerbating the skill shortages and as McCord and Bhorat
(2002) concurred, the economy was moving towards greater capital- and skills intensity and
therefore the demand for unskilled workers was also diminishing. This highlighted structural
changes in the economy with a growing demand for skilled workers. In addition, Kraak
(2004) emphasised that, there was a growing realisation from the government that the path to
national economic prosperity depended fundamentally on a highly skilled workforce.
65
Research Methodology
Leedy and Ormrod (2005) state that the qualitative survey method is suited to answer
questions about the complex nature of phenomena, whilst the quantitative survey method is
used to answer questions about relationships using variables with the purpose of explaining
and controlling phenomena. In order to grasp and uncover the depth relating to the shortage
of skilled artisans in South African construction industry, a quantitative survey was
conducted. It reflected on the extent of training and supply of artisans and uncovered the
effect that fundamental- and institutional issues and challenges have had on the organisations
who are member of the Gauteng Master Builders Association (GMBA). Systematic sampling
was used with a population size of 300 companies (from GMBA), sample size and
questionnaires distributed were 150 respectively. The total number of respondents and
analysed questionnaires were 54 – totalling a response rate of 18%. The standard measure
used for selecting building contractors and companies was in accordance with the information
received from the GMBA. However, the questionnaire was structured using mainly the Likert
scale as it is commonly used in research involving questionnaires.
Findings and Discussion
The tables below reflect the outcomes of the respondents depicting their perceptions and
opinions towards the factors/ aspects focused on in this study, namely the extent of training
and supply of artisans and the effect of fundamental- and institutional issues in the SA
construction industry. It also reflect a mean score (MS) ranging between 1.00 and 5.00. The
MSs above the midpoint score of 3.00 reflect that in general, the responses related more to
the upper- than the lower point of the scale MSs> 3.00 ≤ 5.00, whilst the >1.00 ≤ 3.00 reflects
that the responses which related more to the lower- upper point or equal to midpoint of the
scale >1.00 ≤ 3.00 were therefore deemed conclusive in nature.
The Extent of Training and Supply of Artisans in the South African Construction Industry
Table 1: The relevance of skills training to construction establishment
Statement
Response% MS Rank
Unsure Not relevant ……….……………Very relevant
1 2 3 4 5
Skills training are to your
establishment 0.0 0.0 3.7 35.1 42.6 18.5 3.76 1
Skills development
according to: - - - - - - - -
Senior management 0.0 1.9 1.9 33.3 51.9 11.1 3.70 2
Middle Management 0.0 0.0 5.6 42.6 40.7 11.1 3.60 3
Site Management / Agent 0.0 1.9 7.4 51.9 27.8 11.1 3.40 4
Supervisor / Foremen 0.0 0.0 9.3 59.3 22.2 9.3 3.31 5
Worker (Artisans) 0.0 0.0 22.2 50.0 18.5 9.3 3.20 6
Table 1 reflects the respondents ‗acceptance of the relevance of skills training to
establishments. Given that the MS is 3.76, it indicates that skills training are a relevant
engagement in their establishments. It was however clearly pronounced that respondents‘
establishments focused more on skills development for the senior- and middle management
personnel, than that of site agents, foremen and workers (artisans). The skills development
rates for site agents, supervisors and workers in most establishments fall within the range
2.60 < means core ≤3.40, which are between less than relevant to relevant.
66
Table 2 shows that most of the respondents applied on-site- and off-site training techniques
for developing the skills of their workers and this falls within the 3.40 < mean score ≤4.20.
This reflects that they often apply on-site- and off-site training. However, 20% of the
respondents were unsure if their organisations do make use of formal training institutions
such as FET colleges for their workers, which accounts for 37%. It is therefore quite possibly
an indicator that there is a lack of collaboration between the formal training institutions and
the industry.
Table 2 – Training Techniques Used for Workers (Artisans) Skills Development
Training Technique
Response (%) MS Rank
Unsure
Never Rarely Sometimes Often Always
On-site training 0.0 0.0 1.9 20.4 57.4 20.4 4.00 1
Off-site training 0.0 0.0 11.1 27.8 44.4 16.7 3.70 2
Formal Training 37.0 11.1 12.9 27.8 9.3 1.9 2.70 3
Institutional issues and challenges in South African construction
Table 3- Factors that have contributed to the Shortage of Skills in the South African Construction Industry
Statement
Response (%) MS Ran
k Unsure
Minor ……….……………Major
1 2 3 4 5
Poor performance in mathematics and
sciences 1.9 0.0 1.9 13.0 37.0 46.3 4.30 1
Declining grade 12 pass rate and low
education standards in schools 3.7 0.0 1.6 16.7 48.2 29.6 4.10 2
Lack of resources and weak management
in the primary education school system 1.6 1.6 0.0 25.9 29.6 40.7 4.09 3
Lack of expansion of training institutions
to local regions 3.7 3.7 3.7 20.4 35.2 33.3 3.94 4
High failure rates in school (primary and
secondary) 1.9 1.9 1.9 33.3 37.0 24.1 3.81 5
The learners lack access to practical
experiments during training and for
qualification purposes 1.9 0.0 7.4 29.6 48.2 13.0 3.63 6
Lack of alignment of industrial
requirements with training tutoring
standards 3.7 1.9 9.3 33.3 33.3 18.5 3.60 7
Young skilled artisans with industrial
experience are few 1.9 5.6 7.4 33.3 35.2 16.7 3.51 8
International organizations are recruiting
artisans in SA as skilled artisans are well
recognised 7.4 5.6 12.9 25.9 33.3 14.8 3.42 9
Government underfunded Research into
infrastructure for innovative construction
solution 9.3 7.4 20.4 27.8 22.2 13.0 3.14 10
Table 3 reflects the deduction from responses that ‘the poor performances in mathematics and
sciences‘ is a major factor contributing to the shortage of skills in the SA construction
industry. It has a mean score > the mid-point of 3.00 and fall within the 4.20< mean score ≤
5.0 range. This suggests that a factor such as ‗the poor performance in mathematics and
sciences‘ is between less than major to major / major effect. However, it was defined that the
respondents are of the opinion that the following factors have been perceived as relatively
67
major factors contributing to the shortage of skills, namely, the lack of alignment of industrial
requirements with training, lack of expansion of training institutions to local regions, that
learners lack access to practical experiments during training, lack of resource and weak
management systems, high failure rate in schools and declining grade 12 pass rates.
Respondents claimed that common factors contributed to the skills crisis, included having
few young skilled artisans in the industry and the recruitment of artisans by international
organisations. Having a range fall within the 3.40 <mean score ≤ 4.20 range confirmed that
these have some effect or major effect on the skills crisis.
Conclusions and Further Research
This research study investigated the levels of training and supply for skilled artisans in the
South African construction industry, Gauteng Province. The study was an empirical research
using quantitative survey through questionnaire tool. The respondents have clearly indicated
that the skilled artisans profile in the South African construction industry is not in a stable
state. However, the research findings indicates that there are poor or lack of collaboration
between the formal training institutions and industrial player in the South Africa construction
industry; poor performance of pupils in mathematics and science remain a major hindrance
to the supply pipeline of artisans to the industry; the learners lack of access to practical
experiments during training is a concern issues; the inadequacy of resources and the weak
management system for schools and training institutions are also the fundamental factors that
triggers the skills crisis of artisans in the South African construction industry.
Importantly, these research findings have illuminated the fundamental factors for the skills
crisis. In so doing, the study vehemently suggest that the South African construction industry
players to need create a solution that will help to minimise the shortfall of skilled artisans in
the industry as a matter of necessitate for the survival of the industry. The study further
concludes that skills‘ training adds a relevance element to all the levels and positions
(including that of artisans) in the organisation's operations in the construction industry. All
these are sensitive factors for the South African construction sector‘s survival and its
competitiveness globally. However, it's obvious from Table 2 that construction industry need
to start making use of formal training institutions such as FET colleges for training of their
workers (artisans) as this will form a solid foundation for the harmonisation towards the
contemporary activities in the South African construction industry.
In addition to this, the study has identified that the South African government has a pivotal
role to play in order to salvage the skills menace in the industry, through provision of funds in
the research and development that mainly emphases on building skills capacity of artisan as
well as to, initiate and encourage innovative construction solutions that could ease the
existing skill challenges. Furthermore, government should reinforce and equip management
status, throughout the educational system, including that of primary-and secondary school
level, colleges and training institutions. In this regard, it is imperative that training institutions
should be expanded to local regions, has its rooms to unleash the great potential that will
appeal and attract young people into the industry. Finally, in order to address the shortage of
skilled artisans in the South African construction industry. It is imperative to conduct further
research in the following areas of skills development in an extensive manner; also an in-depth
research study is needed in order to ascertain the type of trade skills of artisans is mostly
affected in the construction industry. It is also necessary to conduct research studies on the
benefits of expansion of training institutions to the local region; and how the training
institutions should embark on strategic programme that will enhance the development of
68
skills of artisans in South Africa. These areas of further research will hold significant
elements of information that will help to combat the skills crisis in the South African
construction industry.
References
Benjamin, C. (2008), Poor education hampering SA growth effort. Business Day, p.5.
CDE. (2007), Skills, Growth and Migration Policy: Overcoming the fatal constraint,
Johannesburg, South Africa, CDE IN DEPTH , Issue 5 February.
cidb (2007), Skills for Infrastructure Delivery in South Africa: The Challenge of Restoring
the Skills Pipeline. Pretoria: cidb.
Fellow, R. & Liu, A. (2008), Research Methods for Construction, 3rd ed. Oxford: Wiley
Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
Janse van Rensburg, D.J., Visser, M., Wildschut, A., Roodt, J. & Kruss, G. (2012) Impact
Assessment of National Skills Development Strategy II. A Technical Report on
Learnership and Apprenticeship Population Databases in South Africa: Patterns and Shift
in Skills Formation. HRSC Press.
Jeffy, M. (2008), Professions case study report: Artisans/Trades. Cape Town: HSRC Press.
Jordaan, N. & Barry, N. (2009), Investigating the Reasons for Lack of Skilled Artisans in
South Africa: The perspective of artisans, South African Journal of Industrial
Engineering 20(1), pp. 173-184.
Kraak, A. (2004), An overview of South African human resources development. Cape Town:
HSRC.
Leedy, P.D. & Ormrod, J.E (2005), Practical Research: planning and design. New Jersey:
Pearson Merrill Prentice Hall.
Marock, C. (2008). Grappling with youth employability in South Africa, Human Sciences
Research Council, HSRC Press.
McCord, A. & Bhorat, H. (2003), Overview of the South African economy, Human
Resources Development Review. Cape Town: HSRC Press.
Morton, R. (2009), Construction UK: Introduction to the industry, 2nd ed. Oxford, Blackwell
Publishing Ltd.
Rasool, F. & Botha, C. J. (2011), The nature, extent and effect of skills shortages on skills
migration in South Africa, South African Journal of Human Resource Management, 9(1.),
pp. 287-298.
Rogerson, C.M. (1999), Building Skills: Cross-Border Migrants and the South African
Construction Industry, Southern African Migration Project- Migration Policy Series
No.11, Idasa, Cape Town.
Roodt, J. & Wildschut, A. (2012), Evaluation of the National Skills Development Strategy,
2005-2012. Skills development through structured qualifications: Learnerships and
apprenticeships. The trade test- a constraint on artisan skilling? HSRC Review, (10)1.
SPAID (2007), Building a 21st Century South Africa: Support Programme for Accelerated
Infrastructure Development- Commissioned by the Presidency Republic of South Africa,
Pretoria: SUDEO International Business Consultants.
Taylor, N. (2011), Priorities for Addressing South Africa‘s Education and Training crisis: A
Review Commissioned by the National Planning Commission, South Africa: JET
Education Service.
Van Rooyen, J. (2000), The new great trek: The story of South Africa‘s White exodus.
Pretoria: UNISA Press.
69
Factors Influencing Skilled Labour Supply in the South
African Construction Industry AO Windapo and SJ Odediran
Department of Construction Economics and Management,
University of Cape Town, South Africa
Abstract:
The paper investigates factors that influence skilled labour supply in the South African
construction industry in order to determine whether there is a relationship between trade
certification and scarce labour skills. The rationale for the investigation is based on the view
of scholars that skilled labour shortage is preponderant in the South African construction; and
the perceived shortage contributes to decrease in productivity and product quality. The paper
reviews relevant literature and employs a mixed method research approach in collecting
empirical data from contracting companies within the Western Cape Province of South Africa
that are listed on the Construction Industry Development Board (cidb) contractor register. It
emerged from the study that there is no shortage of manpower but there is a shortage of
qualified artisans in trades such as electricians, plumbers, welders, fitters and carpenters, who
are more technical in nature, require formal training and certification. The level of supply of
skilled artisans is attributed to the lack of high-quality basic education, the state of the
economy, compulsory certification of artisans, and an aging workforce. It was also found that
there is a significant relationship between the need for labour certification and scarce labour
skills. Based on these findings, the study concludes that skilled labour supply and shortages
would continue to be experienced in the South African construction industry if workers are
unable to get formal certification. It is recommended that the South African government
should put into place proactive strategies in the form of subsidized technical and vocational
schools for the training of tradesmen and improved secondary education, so as to increase the
likelihood of the progression of capable individuals into FET colleges, ensuring that the
supply of certified craftsmen meets the demand.
Keywords:
Construction, Certification, Education, Skill, South Africa
Introduction
Increases in infrastructure spend since 2003 has seen a steady increase in the number of jobs
as well as skill shortages that accompany the increase (cidb, 2007). There were various
contributors to the increase in infrastructure development and construction activity within
South Africa in recent years. These increases in infrastructure development came as a result
of the Government‘s R372 billion-investment programme brought about by the Accelerated
and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (ASGISA) projects, as well as the recent
infrastructure developments that accompanied the hosting of the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
These activities intensified the skills labour crisis in South Africa (cidb, 2007). Skilled
artisans were identified as critical for sustained growth by the government‘s ASGISA as well
70
as other various infrastructure projects (Mukora, 2008), and may be a deterrent to the roll out
by Governments‘ of the proposed Strategic Infrastructure Projects (SIPs).
The cidb (2007) defines construction labour as all persons involved in physical construction
work. This includes skilled and unskilled labour, which forms the core labour component for
the physical completion of the construction process. As a labour intensive industry,
construction places heavy reliance upon the skills of its workforce (Agapiou et al., 1995).
Skill can be defined as the ability to perform particular tasks at a certain level of competence
(Shah and Burke, 2005). These competencies include the ability to perform a set of tasks, the
ability to understand what others are doing and why, and the ability to adapt to changes and
unforeseen circumstances (Department of Labour, 1997). Unskilled labour is more informal
and unclearly defined, comprising of labour, which lacks relevant qualifications and various
forms of education and learning (Shah and Burke, 2005). Uwakweh and Maloney (1991)
posit that developing countries often experience an abundance of unskilled and untrained
labour.
Skills shortage has been a persistent problem and a critical factor facing the South African
construction industry (Department of Education and Employment, 2000; Makhene and
Thwala, 2009). Skills shortage is defined as an insufficient supply of suitably qualified
workers willing to work under existing market conditions, particularly at prevailing wages.
There have been extensive studies done on the subject of skills labour shortage in the
construction industry and the subsequent ways to alleviate the problem (cidb, 2007). These
studies pertaining to skilled labour shortage can be grouped into three categories. The first of
these categories identifies and discusses the various factors contributing to the skilled labour
shortages. The second of the categories deals with the impacts and consequences of the
skilled labour shortages. The last of the categories deals with the methods and means of
dealing with the alleviation of the skilled labour crisis.
The few studies that have focussed on the South African labour market have managed to give
comprehensive and concise factors, which are uniform amongst the various studies, are
common with other construction industries in developing markets. Ademeso et al. (2011)
who studied the Nigerian construction industry and Agapiou et al. (1995) who examined the
UK construction demonstrate this. These studies both identify the cyclic nature of
construction work and the image of the construction industry as major contributing factors to
skills shortage. Factors, which have been greatly examined, offer an opportunity to
understand the skilled labour shortage crisis in the construction industry. For example, the
cyclic nature of construction markets has resulted in the industry experiencing significant
fluctuations in output, which has influenced employment and training level requirements
(Agapiou et al., 1995; Morton and Jagger, 1995). A recession in the construction industry is
accompanied by job losses as companies downsize or go under due to paucity of construction
work (SA Construction News, 2011), the unemployed skilled workers look for opportunities
in other industries as well as in cross-border construction industries (Mackenzie et al., 2000).
When the economy recovers, the skilled workers are reluctant to return to the construction
labour market, therefore further elevating the skilled labour shortage (Agapiou et al., 1995).
Therefore, this study examines the factors influencing skilled labour supply in South Africa
in order to understand whether there are pivotal factors similar to those established in other
developing countries. The study proposes that there is a significant relationship between the
need for labour certification and perceived level of skill shortages in the construction
industry. To conduct the study and test this proposition, the research first of all undertakes an
analytical review of extant literature pertaining to skilled labour shortage in South Africa.
71
Thereafter, it collects empirical data through a mixed research method approach that includes
interviews and questionnaires, the data collected is analysed using inferential and descriptive
statistics and finally, it provides conclusions and recommendations that addresses the
problems of the study.
The Labour Market and Factors Influencing Skilled Labour Supply
This section examines the state of the South African labour market with emphasis on skilled
labour supply in the construction industry. It presents the current state of skills supply and
identifies holistic factors influencing the supply of skilled labour documented in literature.
Overview of the South African Labour Market
The South African labour market is characterised by the predominance of an oversupply of
unskilled workers and a shortage of skilled ones (Department of Labour, 2007) and despite
the fact that a number of reforms have been initiated; the country still faces substantial skill
shortages (Rasool and Botha, 2011). According to Kraak (2008), the skill shortages
experienced in the South African labour market are major impediments to economic growth
and job creation in the country. The definition of skill is generic throughout the literature
reviewed, with all sources attaching a qualification and a certain level of competence /
expertise to a particular activity (Shah and Burke, 2005; Department of Labour, 1997).
The construction industry is one of the largest employers of labour in South Africa
(Department of Labour, 2003). In 2005, the construction industry employed up to two thirds
of all craft related workers (Mukora, 2008) and by 2011, the number of employees that were
involved in the construction industry was 1031000 employees (Mayekiso, 2011). Although
the industry employs a large number of people, there was a decrease in formal employment in
the early 1990s to 2001, with the construction industry loosing over 200000 jobs (cidb,
2007). The increase in infrastructure investment in 2003, in addition to the construction of the
Guatrain and infrastructure for the 2010 FIFA World Cup, stimulated an increase in
employment levels. This resulted in an increase in demand for qualified managers,
supervisors and artisans, which was hampered by the lag in graduation rates in construction
and engineering skills (cidb, 2007).
In South Africa, skills shortage exists in many industries including construction and has been
acknowledged by Government and industry (Department of Labour, 2003). Brier (2009) state
that there is a skills crisis because it takes longer to source skilled workers in the event of a
surge in the demand for skills resulting from various infrastructure and large-scale projects.
The preponderance of skill shortages are blamed on the education system, which is struggling
to overcome decades of neglect and dysfunction under apartheid when the education of black
people was under-funded and of a poor quality, the decline in the apprenticeship system and
the failure of substitute interventions such as training through learnerships and FETs
(Makhene and Thwala, 2009).
Investigation into Factors influencing Skills Shortage
The following are the factors identified in literature as influencing skills shortage in the
construction industry:
72
Image of the industry
The construction industry is perceived as a job of low social standing and lack attractiveness
due to its physical demand, long hours, remote sites and its nomadic life style (cidb, 2007).
Career artisans require people with hands on input rather than just supervision. According to
Mukora (2008), today‘s youth has no preference for hands on labour and would rather be
employed in computer related work. As a result of this poor image, the industry has struggled
to attract young people, has failed to replace the labour that has left the industry as well as
satisfy the increased demand for skilled labour (Ademeso et al., 2011; Cattell, 1997).
Role of Government
The government plays a significant role in the supply of artisans through the funding of
training facilities (Mukora, 2008). The South African government for example has attempted
to accomplish this through the formation of Sector Education and Training Authority
(SETA), with the Construction Education and Training Authority (CETA) as the primary
institution driving this initiative in the construction industry (cidb, 2007). However, it was
revealed that the South African government has sought to over regulate in some instances and
has failed to ensure that various critical institutions of learning are functional so as to meet
the demands of industry (Mukora, 2008).
Quality and Relevance of the Training received by artisans
The cidb (2007) posits that the skills taught in the various training programmes are not
making a significant contribution to the specialised skills required by the industry.
Aging Workforce
Aging members of the workforce, who are near retirement, affect the supply of labour. With
the supply of labour being affected by the low number of skilled workers entering the job
market and a significant portion of the number of qualified artisans, about 30% who will be
leaving the job market (Mukora, 2008).
Cyclical nature of the demand for construction services
The cyclical nature of construction work has been noted as resulting in fluctuations in
potential output, employment and training levels (Agapiou et al., 1995; Drucker and White,
1996; Gruneberg, 1997). Difficulty arises in managing and planning for changes in the
workforce through the peaks and downturns in the industry (Ademeso et al., 2011).
Technological Advancements
Changes in technological advancements in construction have resulted in changes made in the
demand for various skilled labours (Clarke and Wall, 1998). According to DfEE (2000), the
development of new construction methods and processes are redefining the skill requirements
of the industry.
Economic conditions
According to Wells and Jason (2010), the adverse economic conditions have caused
construction companies to dispense with hiring labour permanently in favour of employing
labour on a casual basis. In South Africa, this has resulted in the proliferation of labour
brokers (Hemson, 2000; and Skinner, 2002).
73
Need for Certification
The training that occurs in the informal sector is seldom certifiable because it is not a pre-
requisite for obtaining employment in the informal sector (Cattell, 1997). Awe (2004) views
this lack of requirement for compulsory certification as a barrier to the provision of skilled
workers. This is because, in the non-compulsory certification segments, new entrants do not
always see the value in completing an apprenticeship programme, and those who begin such
a programme may be inclined to discontinue during periods of high demand for skilled
workers in the industry.
Research Methodology
The study employs a sequential mixed method research approach involving personal
interviews and a questionnaire survey in collecting empirical data from a sample of
contracting companies within the Western Cape Province of South Africa that are listed on
the cidb contractor register. The population of the study consisted of all 1497 building and
civil engineering contractors based in the Western Cape and listed in Grades 2 to 9 of the
cidb Register. The simple random sampling technique was used in selecting contractors from
each grade to make up a sample size of 460 respondents. At the end of the survey period, 63
responses were obtained which translates into a 14% response rate.
The questionnaire survey gathered information pertaining to the investigation into the extent
of skilled labour shortage and the factors influencing the shortage, while personal and
telephonic interviews were used in unravelling factors that might have been overlooked in the
questionnaire survey and providing context to the preliminary results obtained. The data
obtained from the survey were analysed using descriptive statistics – the Mean Item Score
(MIS) and inferential statistics – the Spearman‘s coefficient of rank correlation,. A mean
score will represent the results of the MIS, which will be a number ranging from 0 to 1. The
function of the MIS score is to rank the data collected from the rating scales used in the
questionnaire. Equation 1 shows the formula of the MIS analytical technique.
MIS = 5M5 + 4M4 + 3M3 + 2M2 + 1M1 …………..Equation 1
5 x (M5 + M4 + M3 + M2 + M1)
(Where: M1 = none; M2 = low; M3 = average; M4 = high; and M5 = very high)
The Spearman‘s coefficient of rank correlation (rho) (see Equation 2) is a measure of the
association between two variables, which is determined from the rank of observations of the
variables (Fellows and Liu, 1997):
= 1 – 6 D2 ………..Equation 2
n(n2 – 1)
(Where: D = difference between the ranks of two variables; and n = number of observations).
The Spearman correlation test is used to establish whether there is a relationship between the
perceived level of labour shortage and the need for labour certification.
Eight telephone and personal interviews were undertaken. The interview questions sought to
know from the respondents (1) the factors, which determine the extent of the skilled labour
shortage experienced by the particular company; and (2) other factors perceived by the
respondents to influence the severity of the skills shortage for various firms in the
74
construction industry. The data collected was transcribed and analysed using thematic
analysis. Themes emerging from the interviews are used in gaining insight and contextualizing
the factors influencing skill shortages in the South African construction industry.
Findings and Discussion
In this section, the empirical data collected through the questionnaire survey and interviews
conducted are presented, analysed and discussed.
Distribution of Respondents by Contractor Grade
Table 1 shows the distribution of respondents‘ in the survey by their contractor grade.
Table 1: Distribution of Respondents by Contractor Grade
Size Small Contractor Medium Large Contractor Total
cidb Grade 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Frequency 2 1 4 30 16 7 1 2 63
Total 7 46 10
Percentage 11.11% 73.02% 15.87% 100%
Table 1 reveals that the study sample consisted of mainly medium sized contractors, followed
by large and small sized contractors.
Perspectives of Scarce Skills
The study sought to know the level of difficulty experience by contractors in sourcing skilled
labour. The data obtained in this regard is presented in Table 2.
Table 2: Level of difficulty experienced in sourcing skilled labour
Trade
Frequency Total
Response
MIS Rank
None………………………Very High
1 2 3 4 5
Carpenters 6 8 11 14 13 52 0.68 1
Fitters 4 7 12 16 7 46 0.67 2
Electricians 8 13 12 18 8 59 0.62 3
Plumbers 7 10 14 13 8 52 0.62 3
Welders 4 12 17 11 4 48 0.60 5
Roofers 7 13 12 13 6 51 0.59 6
Bricklayers 9 16 12 10 7 54 0.56 7
Tilers 7 10 24 8 3 52 0.56 7
Plasterers 8 12 18 6 6 50 0.56 7
Painters 12 18 10 6 5 51 0.50 10
Table 2 indicates that contractors have more difficulty in sourcing carpenters, fitters,
electricians and plumbers than bricklayers, tilers, plasterers and painters. A few contractors
indicated that there were other trades not listed in the questionnaire that they had difficulty in
finding. For example, instrumentation technicians, who take care of the plant on site, heating,
ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) technicians, steel fixers, shutter hands and sheet
metal workers.
Trade in which contractors require skilled labour to be certified before employment
Table 3 presents data collected on the trades which contractors require some form of labour
certification before employment. It can be seen from Table 3 that while 88% of the
respondents affirmed that their companies require electricians to be certified before
75
employment, 19%, 12%, 8% and 6% required that bricklayers, tilers, painters and plasterers
be certified respectively.
Perceived factors impacting on skilled labour supply
The study sought to know the factors perceived by the respondents as contributing to skilled
labour supply. The data collected in this regard is presented in Table 4. Table 4 shows that
from a ranking perspective, respondents‘ view economic conditions, lack of basic education
and compulsory certification as key factors affecting skilled labour supply.
Table 3: Trade in which company requires labour to be certified
Trade
Frequency Total
Response
Mean
Response
Average
Rank
Yes No
Electricians 52 7 59 0.88 1
Fitters 32 14 46 0.70 2
Plumbers 34 17 51 0.67 3
Welders 33 18 51 0.65 4
Roofers 24 28 52 0.46 5
Carpenters 13 38 51 0.25 6
Bricklayers 10 42 52 0.19 7
Tilers 6 45 51 0.12 8
Painters 4 48 52 0.08 9
Plasterers 3 48 51 0.06 10
Table 4: Factors impacting on skilled labour supply
Factors
Frequency Total
Response
MIS Rank
None………………………Very High
1 2 3 4 5
Lack of basic education 2 5 8 24 22 61 0.793 1
Economic conditions 1 4 10 28 18 61 0.790 2
Compulsory certification 3 9 17 15 17 61 0.711 3
Aging work force 2 9 17 22 11 61 0.702 4
Cyclical nature of construction 2 4 26 18 9 59 0.695 5
Technological challenges 3 9 17 19 12 60 0.693 6
Low income 2 7 25 17 9 60 0.680 7
Health & Safety requirements 3 18 14 19 8 62 0.635 8
Perception of the industry 7 8 18 19 6 58 0.631 9
Test of relationship between labour certification requirement and labour shortage
The study sought to test the proposition that there is a significant relationship between the
need for labour certification and perceived level of skill shortages experienced in the
construction industry. Data presented in Tables 2 and 3 were used in calculating the
difference in rank, which was established as 42. Substituting this into the formula for
calculating the Spearman rank correlation coefficient in Equation 2,
ρ = 1 – 6 x 42 = 1 – 0.25 = 0.75
10 (102 – 1)
The observed value of (rho) (0.75) is larger than the tabulated critical value and is
significant at the 0.05 level of significance for the two-tailed test. Based on these findings, it
can be concluded that the need for trade certification requirement is a significant contribution
76
to the perceived level of skill shortages in the construction industry. Workers may have the
necessary knowledge or skills however; they need a certificate to prove it.
Interview Findings
The factors influencing skilled labour supply established in the interviews corroborated those,
which emerged from the questionnaire and literature surveys. Prominent among these factors are
the lack of education, economic conditions, compulsory certification and the aging work force.
The interviews did how ever give additional insight into factors currently relevant to the skills
labour supply in South Africa. The interviewees also viewed that:
All companies in the construction industry need skilled labour as part of their work force. This is
to ensure that the quality of the work they do is consistent and of the required standard - therefore
skilled labour plays an integral role in the success of a construction firm as it impacts on its
profitability:
The number of skilled labour a company needs is related to their size and value of tenders
they have won. That is, large companies will have a different scale of low, medium and high
skilled labour needs when compared to a small company that normally works as a sub-
contractor. According to a respondent, ―basically, it‘s a function of costs and profits. For
example, a big company like Murray and Roberts might have a pool of skilled workers
employed full time, while a small sub-contractor will only have a few, and employ more
workers on an as need basis. A company, ideally, wants to employ the number of labour as
related to their needs, i.e. whether they have work or not.‖
The issue of labour brokers (e.g. Colven Nkomo) as a factor influencing skilled labour supply
was also mentioned. According to a respondent, ―labour brokers generally have both skilled
and unskilled labour they can call on and employ when they are needed by the companies
they service. These workers are not employed by the company, but are outsourced and that is
why some companies prefer this option because it is easier and cost effective. However, due
to the consistency and quality, which is needed in the work produced, they won't entirely
depend on this source of skilled labour, companies will need to have a few of their own
skilled labourers to ensure quality and consistency of their work.‖
Another factor that emerged is the procurement targets requirement in government contracts.
Government requires a certain percentile of labour to be employed from the local area of
where the project is situated, BBEEE sub-contractors and suppliers as well as a certain
amount of money put aside for training some of the workers. According to a respondent, ―this
may to some extent, affect the amount of skilled labour a company will choose to have, if they
have to utilise local labour and BBEEE sub-contractors‖.
Discussion of Findings
It emerged, from the survey and interviews, that construction firms need skilled labour as part
of their work force. This is to ensure that the quality of work they do is consistent and of the
required standard. Therefore, skilled labour plays an integral role in the success of a
construction firm as it impacts on its profitability. It emerged that the trades in which
contractors experience difficulty in sourcing are those with a technical nature such as
plumbers, electricians and carpenters. These artisans are said to require greater levels of
accuracy, a more rigorous education and training process, and certification. It was found that
the shortage in skilled artisans is correlated to the need for certification; and key factors
perceived as contributing to the level of skilled labour shortage is the lack of basic education,
77
which may affect the ability of an individual to enter Further Education and Training (FET)
colleges, which is suggestive of a poor education system.
The findings of the study are aligned to previous studies by Awe (2004) – need for
certification; Wells and Jason (2010) – Economic conditions; Agapiou et al. (1995); Drucker
and White (1996); Gruneberg (1997); and Ademeso et al. (2011) - Cyclical nature of the
demand for construction services; and Mukora (2008) Aging workforce. There were no
previous studies that considered lack of basic education as a factor influencing skilled labour
supply in the construction industry, or which establishes a relationship between need for
compulsory trade certification and scarce labour skills, which are key findings of this study.
Conclusion and Further Research
This paper examines the factors that influence skilled labour supply in the `South African
construction industry in order to determine whether there is a relationship between trade
certification and scarce labour skills. The study made use of a mixed method research
approach in eliciting empirical data from contractors based in the Western Cape province of
South Africa. It emerged that there were skilled labour shortages in the construction industry
especially within the electrical, plumbing, welding and fitters‘ trade and this shortage is
correlated to the need for certification. It was also found out that the key factors perceived to
affect skilled labour supply are the lack of basic education, economic conditions and need for
certification from a ranking perspective. Based on these findings, the study concludes that
South Africa will continue to experience skill shortages particularly amongst the highly
technical trades in which accuracy is required such as electricians, plumbers, fitters and
welders if the basic education system is not strengthened and if these category of workers are
unable to get certified.
The paper recommends that the South African government should put in place proactive
strategies in the form of subsidized technical and vocational schools for training tradesmen
and for improved secondary education that will increase the likelihood of the progression of
capable individuals into FET colleges. It is also recommended that future research that will
involve at least a third of the provinces in South Africa should be undertaken to examine the
obstacles affecting the training and certification of construction industry artisans. The
research conducted is limited to the Western Cape Province of South Africa and therefore
care should be taken when generalizing its results to the general contractor population in
South Africa.
Acknowledgement
The authors would like to acknowledge with thanks, the assistance of the following people in
conducting the survey and interviews: Dominic Benn, Bulelani Gwabeni and Tatenda
Kanyangarara.
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Commercial Property News, available online: www.saconstructionnews.co.za, accessed
on 21 September 2012.
Shah, C. & Burke, G. (2005), ‗Human Resources and Labour Relations‘, Australian Bulletin
of Labour, 31 (1).
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Skinner, C. 2002, Understanding formal and informal economy labour market dynamics: a
conceptual and statistical review with reference to South Africa. School of Development
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Uwakweh, B.O. & Maloney, W.F. (1991), ‗Conceptual Model for Manpower Planning for
the Construction Industry in Developing Countries‘, Construction Management and
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Informal Construction Sector, African Studies Quarterly, 11(2&3), 107-124.
80
Experiences of women in the construction industry: A case
of South Africa GT Dlamini and WM Shakantu
Department of Construction Management,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa
Abstract:
Current trends in the academic sector and business indicate an increase in the proliferation of
women in construction. More women are being employed and trained in various construction
professions. In the same breath, the increase in number of women entrepreneurs in the
industry not only depicts upward mobility but it also shows the depth of their professionalism
and expertise. Consequently, these women now provide a pool of experts regarding the
participation of women in an industry that has otherwise been traditionally patriarchal.
However, despite the presence of this pool of experts, there is a dearth of research regarding
their experiences in the industry. This paper reports on research that explored the experiences
of women in the South African construction industry. The study followed an exploratory
approach and qualitative semi-structured interviews were employed to gather data. A
purposive sample of eight (8) women involved in cidb level 9 construction firms was
selected. The sample represented the various construction professionals such as quantity
surveying, procurement, finance, training and human resources. The data was further
analysed through interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) to extrapolate on personal
experiences through a detailed examination of each case. The findings indicate that, central to
the discussion of women‘s experiences in the construction industry are; invasive masculine
culture of the industry, poor working conditions, poor work-life balance and negative
attitudes and perceptions as well as upward mobility. The research also shows that some
women are thriving in the industry due to support from their male colleagues.
Keywords:
Construction, empowerment, organizational culture, women, work-life balance
Introduction
Women account for approximately forty per cent (40%) of the work force in South Africa
(OECD, 2012). Their participation in the workforce largely remains within occupations that
are traditionally associated with females such as domestic work and agriculture (OECD,
2012). However, in recent years due to the extensive transformation agenda, women are
slowly becoming visible in other professions that have been previously associated with male
workers. Within the construction industry, there is a diminutive but significant increase in
women employed in the industry (Ozumba & Ozumba, 2012). That is to say, the number of
women employed in industry does not match the demographic that women represent
nationally. However, compared to previous years more women are now actively participating
in construction professions. These women provide an expert pool of knowledge from which
81
women‘s experiences can be understood within a construction environment in the South
African context. Granting that the experiences of women working in management for
example, have been studied extensively, the specific narratives of those that are enrolled in
male dominated industries merits further attention (Watts, 2009). The rationale is that women
must be part of the mechanisms that are responsible for feminizing if not modernising the
construction industry. Consequently, by taking into account the experiences of women
already employed in the industry, the industry stands a better chance of implementing
effective recruitment and retention strategies. In addition, the industry will be able to provide
solutions to the challenges that women face in the construction industry.
Industry Culture
It is widely accepted that construction is a male dominated industry (Agherdien &
Smallwood, 2013). Therefore the industry culture as defined and implemented by the males
in the industry regulates female workers‘ inclusion or exclusion in various organizational
processes and culture. According to Haupt and Madikizela (2009), the cultural setup of the
industry militates against women‘s progression through an exclusionary and discriminatory
construction environment. Since the industry is male dominated, research and other strategic
development is spear headed by male counterparts without necessarily bringing out the voices
of the women that are active in construction. In fact, due to the persistent patriarchal culture,
women‘s issues or experiences are generally not awarded the importance they deserve. Thus
the construction industry is not accommodative to women (English & Le Jeune, 2012). Even
though the transformation agenda has sought to stabilise the inequality through laws and
policies, women still experience many forms of occupational gender segregation (Smith,
2008). This suggests that gender related interventions have a negligible impact on the state of
women employed in construction (Ozumba & Ozumba, 2012). It comes as no surprise
therefore that the feminist discourse advocates that the contribution of women, based on their
experiences, will redefine and improve the culture of the industry.
Research Methodology
This study is qualitative in nature and is located in the Interpretivist paradigm. This approach
embodies the principle that there is a fundamental difference between research conducted in
natural sciences and that in the social or historical scientists (Hammersly, 2012).
Interpretivists argue that it is impossible to understand people‘s actions and social institutions
without taking into account the nature of their perceptions, beliefs and attitudes (Neuman,
2003). Studies within this philosophical orientation seek to determine how people conduct
their day-to-day activities and tasks as well as interactions with each other in organizations
(Neuman, 2003). This research undertook an exploratory approach. Exploratory studies are
commonly appropriate for preliminary investigations into relatively unknown areas of
research (Terre Blanche, Durrheim, & Painter, 2006). Furthermore, exploratory approaches
are suitable for studies that seek to analyse social phenomena. Exploratory research
conducted through the use of open, flexible and inductive approaches reveals speculative
insights and new phenomena (Terre Blanche, Durrheim, & Painter, 2006). Ideally, the best
techniques for collecting data in this form of research, consistent with the interpretivist
paradigm, includes semi-structured interviews and observation (Terre Blanche, Durrheim, &
Painter, 2006).
Thus, an interview protocol formed the data collection process for this study. In addition to
the series of questions that were presented, the women were requested to detail their general
82
experiences in the construction industry. The women were purposefully selected by virtue of
their qualifications and work experience in the construction firms. The interviews were
recorded, transcribed and coded. Furthermore, during the interview process the researcher
compiled notes for each participant and they were reviewed during the analysis. The
interviews were analysed through interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). IPA is a
method used to analyse data through the interpretation of subjects‘ rendition of personal
experiences. This method draws from phenomenology, which focuses on individuals and first
hand experiences of the phenomena of the world and hermeneutics which refers to the theory
of interpretation and idiography which focuses on the detailed examination of cases (Smith,
2011). This approach has been used largely in psychological research; however, it is fast
gaining ground in other disciplines such as humanities and management that operate within
the qualitative research sphere (Fade, 2004; Shinebourne, 2011). It offers researcher the
opportunity to engage participants about their lived experiences.
Critically, in relation to this study IPA is best suited as a data analysis strategy because its
theoretical design suggests that knowledge and understanding are generated from cultural and
sociological contexts (Shinebourne, 2011). Furthermore, IPA is an inductive process, with a
sensitive and contemplative focus because the researcher is required to assess the
participants‘ account of phenomena in order to highlight the important issues (Griffin & May,
2012). IPA complements exploratory studies, which in most cases utilise purposive sampling
techniques and interview protocols (Shinebourne, 2011). Obviously, the on-going debate on
biasness of qualitative methods forces IPA practitioners to accept that they too bring their
own perceptions which ideally, should not interfere with the process (Griffin & May, 2012).
From the standpoint of IPA practitioners, the only way to understand participant‘s
experiences is through paying attention to participants‘ accounts. Smith (2008) further points
out that the IPA approach allows flexibility to ensure that unanticipated themes or research
areas emerge during analysis. Central themes were generated from the interviews and they
are detailed in Section 4. A sample of eight (8) women from different construction firms in
the grade 9 cidb category was purposefully selected.
Findings and Discussion
This section outlines the results of this research.
Profile of the Participants
The women that formed part of this enquiry varied according to age, experience and
profession in the construction industry. Table 4.1 represents the age, role in the organization
and tenure that each participant had completed in the specific construction firm by the time of
the interview. The table is indicative of the concentration of women in administrative roles
than in production roles in construction.
Table 4.1: Participants Profile
Participant Age Sex Job Profile Tenure
A4 24 F Quantity Surveyor 4
A5 31 F Quantity Surveyor 5
A6 46 F Financial Manager 8
C2 25 F Procurement Admin 5
E1 32 F Human Resources Officer 12
E2 53 F Organizational Development Director 13
F1 42 F Training Executive 2
F4 32 F Organizational Performance Manager 2
83
Analysis
Each of the women that participated in this research opined on their experiences in the
construction industry. Invariably, their experiences were similar despite the different
situations such as age, tenure and portfolio in the different construction firms. Therefore upon
analysing each transcript, central themes were generated to highlight the major experiences
and they are discussed below.
―It is still a man‘s world‖
Global statistics indicate that men still constitute of a higher proportion of the workforce in
the construction industry and women remain under-represented. This holds true for the South
African context where, over 80% of the workforce consists of males. The regulation of the
industry in terms of policy, legislation and decision-making still rests on the male
counterparts in construction. Similarly, the cultures that persist in the construction firms are
far more supportive to men than women. That means the organizational structures and
practices within the construction firms are more suited for males than women. One of the
participants indicates that;
“The construction industry is a just a boys club. It is difficult to penetrate this club. They
operate according to boy‘s rules. Even the social events represent the male. Social events
include watching rugby and drinking whisky‖
The women indicate that even though the transformation processes of the country have eased
their entry into the construction industry, decision making is still reserved for males. The few
women that earn the opportunity to participate in decision-making processes of the
construction firms, experience a lot of prejudice. One of the women who occupy an executive
role in one organizations explains;
“I am the only woman in the executive and I get despondent because I find myself being the
only one that has to fight the battle for women. I experience a lot of prejudice for advocating
for women‘s interests‖
Women that occupy managerial or executive roles also find a deep sense of loneliness in
construction firms. In most cases they have to fight their battles alone without the support of
the other male executives. Some of the women stated that, decision making is often subjected
to a ballot and the majority which constitutes of males, always rules. So the women have a
choice to become despondent or to align themselves with decisions that they are not
comfortable with. Pursuing their ideas is an insurmountable task unless the management team
is open minded about issues of equity and gender. One of the woman notes that;
―My first meeting here, I was surrounded by men at the round table. It is very lonely‖.
This just confirms that, despite the comparative increase in the figures of women in the
industry, the under representation of women in the South African construction industry
persists.
Working conditions
The construction industry is known for its harsh working conditions. Women in the industry
struggle because the relevant policies and legislation aimed at making working conditions in
the industry more amiable generally not implemented. For instance one of the participants
indicates;
84
―We have changed our maternity leave 4 times in the last 13 years…but still women earn
50% of their salary for maternity leave. Other industries are way ahead‖
Another woman indicates;
―Working on site has its challenges as a woman. Working away from home is
worse…sometimes women share ablutions and accommodation with their male counterparts
and that is wrong according to labour laws‖
Some sites do not have ablution facilities and the reason behind this is that, some firms do not
even anticipate hiring women, which would warrant such facilities.
In terms of physical labour, women are just as capable as their male counterparts. Women
also tend to be more neat and meticulous. The women also indicated that, women that choose
the construction industry are usually tenacious and physically capable of the enduring the
harsh conditions. Their decision to stay and withstand these conditions is an economical
decision. Accessing employment opportunities trumps the working conditions in the industry.
Work-life Balance
Work-life balance is a critical issue for women in construction. It is an important determinant
of women‘s progression in the construction industry. The women that participated in this
study confirm that, work-life balance makes or breaks their careers in the industry. Time is an
important factor. Women still have traditional, biological and social responsibilities such as
taking care of families and raising children. The industry is characterised by long working
hours as well as working away from home. As a result women find themselves in a difficult
position and have to choose between work and family. One of the quantity surveyors states
that;
―I was supposed to meet my friends for drinks this weekend. I had to pass because I have
been working away for consecutive weekends. I opted to go for a movie with my daughter. I
am also married and I need to fulfil my responsibilities as a married women. So I constantly
have to weigh how and what I spend my limited time outside work‖
Due to this constant juggle women are forced out of production roles to administrative roles
and consulting to ensure that their families are not side-lined in their quest for upward
mobility. The organizational director indicates that;
―We lose a lot of highly skilled women due to the work-family conflict that is instigated by the
industry‖
Another participant explains that;
―When my life is not balanced, my performance suffers greatly‖
This indicates that work-life balance not only causes personal conflict, it also impedes
performance. Career progression and upward mobility is determined by performance and due
to the pressures of work and family life women are highly likely to fall behind in this aspect.
One of the participants explains that;
―One of the women site workers relinquished her site job for an administrative job. She had a
baby but was expected to work out of town. I would never leave my child for a whole week at
85
that age. Another lady has successfully been granted permission to be placed at a site close
to her children. But it was a battle‖
Another woman quips;
―Moving around makes it difficult for the women to stay in the industry. It‘s different for a
man to leave a wife and move to another site than it is for a woman to leave her family.
When a woman leaves, the whole family has to move‖
The data reveals that the construction industry‘s recruitment strategies are more inclined to
young male professionals because they are able to work overtime and away from home. For
most construction firms, it makes business sense to attract and retain such employees.
Unfortunately, women will continue to be excluded because work-life balance is an important
factor for women who desire to advance their careers. In that sense, the industry will remain
male dominated. Alternatively, it could be that, women are also choosing to refrain from the
industry because it is known for poor work-life balance. Some of the women indicated that,
supportive families, partners and spouses often alleviate the conflict by stepping into the roles
that are traditionally set for women. In such cases women are then able to take up more
responsibilities.
Working twice as hard
Women that aspire to have successful careers in the construction industry have their work cut
out for them. They have to work twice as hard as their male counterparts to prove their
competence. It is a daily battle because of the attitudes that are entrenched in the male culture
that exist in the industry. This is a sentiment shared by all the women that participated in this
study. One of the women states that;
―It is tough for women working in the industry. You have to constantly prove yourself. I don‘t
expect to be treated like someone on a pedestal‖
A quantity surveyor expresses that;
We put a lot of pressure on ourselves. We don‘t want to be seen as using our femininity as a
crutch. So we do much more to prove our equal ability. Sometimes you are accused of it, so
you still have to work harder to prove that you are not using femininity as a crutch‖
Another notes that;
Despite our qualifications, men in this industry think we don‘t know anything about
construction. They don‘t believe that you can do it, so you have to work extra hard to prove
yourself‖
Apart from the pressures of the industry, women have the added pressure of working twice as
hard to prove their abilities. This is a recipe for burnout, fatigue and despondency especially
if is it is not kept in check. Regrettably, most of the women indicate that it is an on-going
problem. They state that the only solution is to leave the industry or change to administrative
portfolios. In addition, the women further state that, the effort sometimes does not yield the
desired awards such as recognition and increased remuneration. Men still earn better salaries
irrespective of the role or job description.
86
Attitudes and perceptions
Women in construction experience a mix of negative attitudes and perceptions about their
participation in the industry. Amongst the male counterparts, there is an on-going debate
about the capability of women to withstand the realities of the construction industry. The
women that participate in this study indicate that, men are slowly adapting to their presence
but they would rather have women working in office related jobs than in production circles.
Therefore, women working on site, especially if they hold a managerial role, are likely to
experience disrespect and insubordination. One of the women indicates that;
―Men onsite will not listen to a woman‘s instruction‖
Since the industry is reflective of the male dominance of the industry, the socio-cultural
perceptions that they carry state that a woman cannot give instructions to a male worker.
Furthermore any effort to supply ideas and suggestions will be shot down because the male
workers think they know more about construction work than women do. Women are still
treated with inferiority. One of the women states that;
―Men are borne of women but the significance of that goes out of the window when they
come to the office. They forget where they came from. They were raised by women and they
are great because of those women that raised them‖
Another woman states that;
My line manager will not ask a male colleague at the same level as me, to make tea for them
or ask them to call someone. But it easier for him to call me and make those requests‖
Since it is a male dominated industry, soft issues are generally ignored. Women are emotional
beings but they constantly have to restrain themselves lest they be labelled with degrading
terms such as ―cry baby‖. One worker states that;
―You need to keep your emotion in check otherwise you will be labelled as a hysterical
woman‖
Meanwhile men are allowed to express their emotions at will with aggression, anger,
tantrums, outbursts and sometimes, violent behaviour. Their behaviour is generally tolerated
whereas women are given derogatory labels if they express the same behaviour. Some of the
women also indicate that firmness is often construed as bossiness yet when men exercise
shrewdness it is deemed to be effective leadership. This enumerates that women are subjected
to prejudice, ridicule and stereotyping in addition to forms of harassment and discrimination.
These perceptions and attitudes are a symptom of male hegemony that is entrenched in the
industry culture.
Enabling Environment
Most of the women indicated the industry is beginning to change as more women gain access
into it. The male counterparts are becoming more open minded towards gender issues and
equity in the profession. For instance, some of the women stated that they were successful
construction professionals as a result of the on-going support and mentorships from the male
counterparts. In some cases management which is represented by a youthful mix of
construction professionals, a far cry from traditional construction is more sympathetic to the
plight of women. In addition the women that choose to stay in the profession as a result of
87
their personal aspirations, job satisfaction and personal mobility. Thus despite the many
challenges that women face, construction firms are slowly integrating women into all
construction portfolios albeit at a slow rate. The leadership in construction firms is also
implementing various strategies that will improve the status of women in the industry. Some
of the construction firms provide learnerships and apprenticeships to university students and
retain them even after they graduate.
Conclusion and Further Research
This paper outlined the various experiences of women working in construction firms in South
Africa. The findings indicate that although there is an increase in women that are choosing
careers in the construction professions, they continue to encounter negative experiences. The
construction industry is still very sexist; and it is in favour of males due to male dominance
and the culture is espoused in the same manner. The attitudes and perceptions, which are
entrenched in the male value systems, are generally negative towards women who choose
careers in construction. Consequently, all organizational processes such as remuneration and
upward mobility are still in favour of men. Women still have to work twice as hard to reach
the organizational levels that are occupied by men. This poses a conflict between their
professional aspirations which require them to spend more time and energy and family
responsibilities which they cannot sacrifice. As a result work-life balance is difficult to attain
for women in construction. Notwithstanding the plethora of difficult experiences, the study
further shows that the levels of support for women are improving. The women that
participated in the study indicated that their presence in the construction industry was because
the industry is slowly becoming accessible and supportive. Ultimately, the culture in the
industry which determines organizational processes needs to be modified and adapt to
modern global practices that are supportive of women to the extent that their experiences are
meaningful and positive.
Perhaps, specific strategies need to be created to decipher the gender responsibilities for each
gender within construction firms. Women, by virtue of participating in the construction
industry, receive empowerment from early stages of life and their careers and this gives them
the aptitude to choose careers in construction. Men on the other hand, are not empowered,
particularly in male dominated industries, to work with women. Thus, further research and
strategic thinking needs to be directed to empowering men in the construction industry so that
they are able to coexist with female professionals. Possibly, sometime in the near future, the
worth and contribution of women in the industry will be accentuated and their experiences
will be more positive than they currently are.
Acknowledgement
This paper is extracted from a PhD thesis that outlines organizational culture and work-life
balance in the construction industry. A related paper authored by the same authors and titled
―The impact of the construction industry culture on the work-life balance of women
employees: A case of South Africa‖ inspired the writing of this paper. The latter paper was
presented at the TG 59 ―People in construction‖ (6-9 April 2014) conference.
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Geldenhuys, M. (2011). Demographics of women in the workplace. Johannesburg: South
African Board for People Practices (SABPP).
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Researching Society and Culture. London: SAGE.
Hammersly, M. (2012, September). Methodological Paradigms in Educational Research.
Retrieved 2013, from:
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Haupt, T. & Madikizela, K. (2009). Why do South African Women choose careers in
construction. Acta Structilia, 16(2), 46-68.
Neuman, W. (2003). Social Research Methods. Boston: Pearson Education.
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Ozumba, A. & Ozumba, C. (2012). Women in Construction in South Africa: Investigating the
Feminine Footprint of the South African Construction Industry. Journal for the
Advancement of Performance Information and Value, 4(1), 28-43.
Shinebourne, P. (2011). Interpretative phenomenological analysis. In N. Frost (Ed.),
Qualitative Research Methods in Psychology (pp. 44-65). Berkshire: Open University
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Smith, A. (2008). Neoliberalism, welfare, policy and feminist theories of social justice:
feminist theory special issue: Feminist theory and welfare. Feminist Theory, 9(2),
131-144.
Terre Blanche, M., Durrheim, K. & Painter, D. (2006). Research in Practice: Applied
Methods for the Social Sciences (2nd ed.). (M. Terre Blanche, K. Durrheim, & D.
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89
An empirical analysis of the factors which influence
construction workers’ nutrition: A pilot study Chioma Okoro, Innocent Musonda and Justus Agumba
Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
Nutrition is known to impact on productivity, health and safety (H&S) performance of
workers. However, there is scant literature focusing on the nutrition of construction workers,
especially in South Africa. This paper investigates the factors which influence the nutrition of
construction workers. A quantitative method for data collection was adopted for the study.
Mean Scores (MS) were computed using Excel software to determine the rank and
significance of the factors. Nutritional knowledge, economic and physiological factors were
indicated as the major influencers on construction workers‘ nutrition. These findings provide
evidence which can be used for targeting construction workers‘ nutrition, which will in turn
improve H&S performance on construction sites. Identifying the nutrition-influencing factors
will allow for the design of explicit and effectual nutrition intervention programs, tailored and
streamlined for construction workers specifically.
Keywords:
Construction, health and safety, nutrition, workers, South Africa
Introduction Nutrition has been a source of concern to researchers and organizations including the
International Labour Organization (ILO), for ages due to its contribution to productivity and
H&S performance improvements (Wanjek, 2005; ILO, 2005). National productivity levels
can be raised by 20% if workers are adequately nourished (World Health Organization
(WHO), 2004) through consumption of foods containing various nutrients including proteins,
carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals (Amare et al., 2012). Diversity in the diet is important
to meet the requirements for energy and essential nutrients (Rathnayake et al., 2012).
Moderation and balance are also essential as over-consumption or under-consumption of
certain foods connotes unhealthy eating and can lead to development of chronic diseases such
as heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer (Irvine et al., 2004; Chan, 2008). For instance,
excessive consumption of fatty foods can lead to accumulation of fat in the liver, clogging of
blood veins (leading to heart disease) or excessive weight gain. Again, excessive
consumption of salty foods increases blood pressure, leading to heart disease. On the other
hand, under-consumption of certain foods leads to nutrient deficiencies, increased
susceptibility to infections (Chan, 2008), fatigue and dizziness (Wanjek, 2005) and thus
leading to accidents and injuries. Therefore, healthy eating assists in maintaining healthy
bodies and minds, reduces the rate of susceptibility to infections and diseases and provides
energy which construction workers require in order to perform their activities (Quintiliani,
Sattelmair and Sorensen, 2007; Chenoweth, 2011). Construction activities are labour
intensive, and physically and mentally demanding, requiring moderate to maximum levels of
physical strength and stamina, manual dexterity and coordination as well as mental
concentration and alertness (Construction Labour Contractors (CLC), 2014). Construction is
90
a high-risk sector, involving a lot of hazardous work which if performed while fatigued or
suffering from ill-health can result in death or permanent disability (Bakke, 2012).
Consequently, given the invaluable contribution of nutrition in H&S performance as well as
productivity improvements, research on the subject is warranted. Improving nutrition requires
an understanding of the factors that influence nutritional uptake (European Food Information
Council (EUFIC), 2005), especially as perceived by the target population themselves (Lassen
et al., 2007; Watkins et al., 2008). However, although there has been some research on the
factors that influence the nutrition of workers (Du Plessis, 2012; Tiwary et al., 2012; Okoro
et al., 2014), it is surprising that there is paucity of empirical studies, especially in South
Africa, focusing on the factors which influence the nutrition of construction workers in
particular. Previous studies have either incorporated workers in general (Wanjek, 2005;
Marreiros and Ness, 2009), or focused on particular factors, for instance, Puoane et al. (2006)
- a South African study, focused on socio-cultural factors; and Watkins et al. (2008), which
dwelt on environmental factors and workers in general; or focused on construction
apprentices only (Du Plessis, 2012) or presented a review of literature (Du Plessis, 2011;
Okoro et al., 2014). The present paper therefore investigates the factors which could possibly
influence the nutrition of construction workers, as perceived by them.
The objective of the present paper is to establish the significant factors which influence
construction workers‘ nutrition, as perceived by the workers themselves. Identifying these
factors is critical to allow for explicit and effectual nutrition intervention designs for H&S
performance improvements, tailored and streamlined for construction workers in particular.
Factors Influencing Nutrition
Nutritional knowledge (NK)
Knowledge about nutrition and the associated health benefits influences nutrition (Divakar et
al., 2012; Zilberman and Kaplan, 2014). Research has shown that construction workers have
poor nutrition and this is partly as a result of low level of nutritional knowledge (Men‘s
Health Forum (MHF), 2009; Kolver, 2012). However, it has been argued that an increase in
NK does not necessarily eventuate in improved food choices (Tepper et al., 1997 cited by Du
Plessis, 2011). This is probably because knowledge about health does not lead to direct action
when individuals are unsure of how to apply their knowledge (EUFIC, 2005). According to
Grunert et al. (2010), NK is indicated by ability to identify healthiest foods from various
sources or knowledge of what a healthy diet means; knowledge of the sources of nutrients;
and knowledge of the health implications of eating or failing to eat particular foods. Food
preparation and cooking skills have also been indicated to influence food choices and eating
behaviours (Chenhall, 2010; EUFIC, 2011).
Economic factors (EF)
Research indicated that construction workers‘ nutritional uptake is influenced by their
wages/income (Du Plessis, 2012; Tiwary et al., 2012), availability of healthy food
alternatives (Du Plessis, 2012) and the cost/price of food (Waterlander et al., 2012; 2013;
Bruner and Chad, 2014). In Waterlander et al. (2012; 2013), price discounts on fruits and
vegetables were found to stimulate consumption of those foods. Marketing strategies of food
vendors and companies (Kushi et al., 2006) have also been indicated to influence food
choice.
Physical factors (PC)
91
Ball et al. (2006) opined that the physical environment influences the choices of food made at
a workplace. Research indicated that welfare facilities for washing up before eating, storing
and heating up food, and eating areas are limited or non-existent on construction sites and
thus workers‘ nutrition is adversely affected (Queensland Government, 2012b). Non-
provision of welfare facilities for eating gives rise to food contamination from the dirty
physical environment in which construction workers work, leading to ill-health, a view
supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO, n. d.). According to FAO (n. d.),
adequacy of food nutrition is considered in both quantitative and qualitative terms. In
addition to being adequate in energy, foods in any work environment should be safe and free
from contaminants, parasites and toxins which may be injurious to health (FAO, n. d.). Eating
locations were also indicated to influence food choice (Stroebele and De Castro, 2004).
Social factors (SF)
Research has indicated that the nutrition of construction workers is formed or constrained by
circumstances which are essentially social including eating behaviors of peers or colleagues
(EUFIC, 2005; Watkins et al., 2008; Ellis, 2013), family support and traditions (EUFIC,
2005) and social class (Grunert et al., 2010), family needs and social values attached to food
(love, acceptance, happiness and humanity - ubuntu) (Puoane et al., 2006).
Psychological factors (PS)
Psychological factors such as beliefs, attitudes (which usually stem from unfamiliarity of
foods or their effects on health), habits, perceptions, motives (for example, to be thin or lose
weight) and personality influence food intake (Babicz-Zielinska, 2006). Dindyal and Dindyal
(2003) argued that some cultures and traditions may encourage or frown upon consumption
of certain foods by individuals who belong to their groups, leading to restrictions such as
exclusion of meat and milk from the diet. Also, individuals may adopt particular food habits
of the local culture when they move to a new country, probably because they want to show
off their social standing and improvement in socio-economic status (Puoane et al., 2006).
Physiological factors (PF)
According to EUFIC (2005), and Delaney and McCarthy (2009), hunger, taste, appetite,
genetic predispositions and personality traits play important roles in determining food choice
and dietary behaviour. Nutritional requirements for health status also influence food choice
(Petrovici and Ritson, 2006). According to Pfeifer (2009), it was found that differing norms
imposed on men and women by the society as to what type of food is perceived as feminine
or masculine, influenced food choice and intake. Women who eat a small feminine meal (for
example, salads) earn higher social approval than those who eat a larger portion of a ―man‘s
meal‖, which is usually energy-dense, for example, meatball burger (Pfeifer, 2009) and pap.
Although a plethora of factors have been indicated to influence nutritional uptake, it is
essential to identify the critical factors which relate specifically to construction workers in
South Africa, and based on their perceptions, in order to develop effective and successful
strategies to improve their nutrition particularly and thus safety performance on construction
sites. This idea is supported by Schroer et al. (2014) who aptly asserted that focusing on a
lifestyle behavior such as nutrition, at a time, maximizes effectiveness. The next part of this
paper evaluates these factors in order to determine their relative importance in construction
workers‘ food choice decisions.
Research Methods
92
The present paper reports on a pilot study conducted as part of an on-going research project
designed to investigate the factors which influence the nutritional uptake and in turn, H&S
performance of construction workers on sites. A survey questionnaire consisting of 5-point
likert-scale questions was constructed from an in-depth synthesis of literature and distributed
by the researcher by hand. Since this was a pilot study and exploratory in nature, three sites
including two building construction sites and one road construction site were chosen because
they were nearby and therefore convenient for the researcher (Adler and Clark, 1999 cited by
Ojo, 2013). The questionnaires were administered to site workers who were actively engaged
in construction activities (as opposed to the managers and supervisors), since they are directly
susceptible to poor nutrition and safety performance on construction sites. Participants who
were present and willing to take part in the study were also conveniently chosen based on
their relative ease of access (Goyal and Goyal, 2012).
A total of 20 questionnaires were administered; 19 were returned and were included in the
analyses. The likert-scale questions are discussed based on Mean Score (MS) comparison to
determine the ranking or relative importance of the factors as assessed by the respondents.
The MS is the average score obtained from all weighted responses on the 5-point scale.
Weights were assigned to each response ranging from 1 to 5 for ―strongly disagree‖ to
―strongly agree‖. In addition to the points 1 to 5, the mean scores are also discussed based on
interval ranges or values between the points. Likert scale data can be analyzed with an
interval measurement scale as this reflects meaningful relative distances between points
(Trochim, 2006; Boone and Boone, 2012). The interval between points equates to the ratio of
the difference between the upper and lower limits, to the number of points, i.e., 4/5 = 0.80.
Therefore, each interval on a 5-point scale has a value of approximately 0.80. Table 1 shows
the distribution of the computed MS interval values used in the present study.
Table 1: Mean Score ranges
MS range Meaning
1.00 - 1.80 Strongly disagree
1.81 - 2.60 Disagree
2.61 - 3.40 Neutral
3.41 - 4.20 Agree
4.21 - 5.00 Strongly agree
Findings and Discussion
95% of the respondents were male and 5% were female. 26% were below 24 years of age,
58% were between the ages of 25 and 34, 11% were between 35 and 44 years of age and 5%
were above 44 years. 11% had primary school education, 37% attended high school, 47%
attended training colleges, and 5% had a diploma certificate. 21% were brick-layers, 47%
were electricians, 5% were steel-fixers, 21% were plumbers and 5% were pavers.
Factors influencing construction workers’ nutrition
Respondents were asked to express their level of agreement to statements about the factors
which influenced their food choices. Table 2 indicates the respondents‘ agreement relative to
the extent to which nutritional knowledge influences their food choice and intake in terms of
a mean score ranging between 1.00 and 5.00. The MSs were in the band of 3.41 - 4.20
suggesting that respondents‘ can be deemed to agree that knowledge about what a healthy
93
diet means, knowledge about sources of nutrients, and about the health effects of particular
foods as well as cooking skills influenced their nutrition.
This evinces that nutritional knowledge attributes influenced construction workers‘ nutrition.
This result is in line with the findings from the study by the Men‘s Health Forum (2009) in
the United Kingdom in which it was reported that a lack of knowledge about particular foods
led to construction workers consuming high-fat foods, believing that they will be enabled to
perform their physically-demanding tasks by consuming such foods.
Table 2: Nutritional knowledge (NK) indicators influencing nutrition
Nutritional knowledge indicators MS Rank
Knowledge about what a healthy diet is 3.68 1
Knowledge about sources of nutrients 3.63 2
Knowledge about health effects of particular foods 3.58 3
Cooking skills 3.53 4
Table 3 shows the respondents‘ concurrence with regard to the extent to which economic
factors influence their nutrition in terms of a mean score ranging between 1.00 and 5.00. It is
notable that all the respondents can be deemed to agree that wages, cost, availability of food
and food discounts influence their nutrition as the mean scores for these factors are in the
band of 3.41 - 4.20, while they tended to be neutral about nutrition being influenced by brand
name and marketing strategies with the mean scores in the range of 2.61 - 3.40.
This suggests that wages and price significantly influenced nutrition. It is in line with
findings of Tiwary et al. (2012), who found that most building and construction workers in
Indian were poorly paid and therefore could not afford proper nutrition, and as a result,
regular consumption of staple foods such as rice and potatoes, inadequate in quantity and
quality, was a norm. That cost and availability of healthy foods influenced nutritional uptake
corroborated with the findings of Du Plessis (2012) who found that construction apprentices
in Australian were mostly concerned with the affordability of the foods accessible to them.
The finding that food discounts and subsidies influence food decisions aligns with findings
from studies by Waterlander et al. (2012 and 2013) who found that there was an increased
consumption of fruits and vegetables when they were sold at cheaper prices.
Table 3: Economic factors influencing nutrition
Economic factors MS Rank
Wages 4.05 1
Cost/price 4.05 1
Availability 3.84 3
Discounts/subsidies 3.63 4
Brand name 2.95 5
Marketing strategies/advertisements 2.63 6
Table 4 indicates the respondents‘ concurrence with regard to the extent to which physical
factors influence their nutrition in terms of a mean score ranging between 1.00 and 5.00. On-
site washing-up and catering facilities with MSs in the range of 3.41 - 4.20 suggests that
respondents concurred that they were nutrition-influencers. The location where food is sold
can be deemed to be neutral on construction workers‘ nutrition, with MS in the range of 3.41-
4.20. This is in line with findings from Wanjek (2005) which indicated that quality of food in
terms of hygiene is an important aspect of nutrition.
94
Table 4: Physical factors influencing nutrition
Physical factors MS Rank
On-site washing up facilities 3.63 1
On-site catering facilities 3.42 2
Location 3.21 3
Table 5 evinces the respondents‘ concurrence with regard to the extent to which social factors
influence their nutrition in terms of a mean score ranging between 1.00 and 5.00. It is notable
that family traditions and norms have an influence on nutrition, as assessed by the
respondents, as the mean score for the statement of this variable lies between 3.41 and 4.20.
This finding is consistent with findings from Puoane et al. (2006), a South African study,
which indicated that nutritional uptake (amongst the black population) was influenced by the
social meaning attached to food such as love and humanity fostered within and outside family
settings. Respondents tended to be neutral pertaining to colleagues‘ influence, media/social
networking and social class as nutrition-influencers, with MSs between 2.61 and 3.40.
Table 5: Social factors influencing nutrition
Social factors MS Rank
Family norms and traditions 3.68 1
Colleagues‘ influence 2.95 2
Media/social networks 2.90 3
Social class 2.74 4
Table 6 indicates the respondents‘ agreement with regard to the extent to which
psychological factors influence their nutrition in terms of a mean score ranging between 1.00
and 5.00. It evinces that respondents concur that perceptions of benefits of healthy eating to
productivity and safety performance improvements influence nutritional behaviour, as their
recorded MSs are between 3.41 and 4.20. Furthermore, the MSs for body image, mood, belief
about adequacy of diet, habits, beliefs about eating foods prescribed by culture and attitude
towards nutrition promotions can be considered to be neutral as they are in the band of 2.61 -
3.40. It was established that all beliefs related to meat abstinence have MSs in the range of
1.81 - 2.60. This suggests that with regard to beliefs that avoiding meat saves money or that
killing animals for food is not good or avoiding meat helps to keep one healthier being
nutrition-influencers, respondents tended to disagree.
Table 6: Psychological factors influencing nutrition
Psychological factors MS Rank
Perception of benefit to productivity
improvements
4.05 1
Perception of benefit to safety performance 3.79 2
Body image 3.26 3
Mood 2.84 4
Belief about adequacy of diet 2.84 4
Habits 2.84 4
Beliefs about food from culture 2.68 7
Cynical attitude towards nutrition promotions 2.63 8
Belief that avoiding meat saves money 2.32 9
Belief that killing animals for food is not good 2.21 10
Belief that avoiding meat will keep me healthier 2.11 11
95
These findings are inconsistent with findings from Babicz-Zielinska (2006) in which it was
indicated that psychological factors influence nutrition. Possible explanations for this could
be that construction workers are not vegetarians, or are not concerned about body image.
Table 7 shows the respondents‘ concurrence with regard to the extent to which physiological
factors influence their nutrition in terms of a mean score ranging between 1.00 and 5.00. It is
notable that there is concurrence amongst the respondents regarding the physiological factors
as nutrition-influencers.
Table 7: Physiological factors influencing nutrition
Physiological factors MS Rank
Hunger 4.05 1
Appetite 3.90 2
Quality/appearance 3.84 3
Satiety 3.58 4
Taste 3.42 5
Nutritional requirements for current health status 3.11 6
Gender 3.05 7
MSs between 3.41 and 4.20 suggest that the respondents‘ concurrence can be deemed to be
―agree‖ with regard to hunger, taste, quality/appearance of food, the level of satisfaction
obtained from the food and the taste of the food as nutrition-influencers, while the
respondents‘ concurrence can be deemed to be neutral that nutritional requirements for
existing health status as well as gender influence their food choices and intake, with MSs in
the band of 2.61 - 3.40. That taste and quality of food influenced decisions made about food
is consistent with findings from Watkins et al. (2008), in which it was revealed that majority
of employees perceived that the quality and taste of food influenced their choice of food and
this resulted in over-consumption or under-consumption of certain foods.
Conclusions and Further Research
The study set out to establish the significant factors which influence the nutrition of
construction workers in Johannesburg, Gauteng. The results of this study evinced that
nutritional knowledge, wages, cost/price of food, availability of healthy food alternatives,
food discounts/subsidies, hunger, taste and quality of food were major influencers on
construction workers‘ nutrition. Other factors included availability of washing up facilities,
family norms, and notions about food (benefits to productivity and safety performance).
With these findings, intervention programmes can be designed to help improve construction
workers‘ nutrition and thus H&S performance. It is therefore suggested that nutrition
intervention programmes should focus on the identified significant factors. Since the major
factors include aspects that may be beyond the workers‘ control, for instance wages and cost
of food, supplementary feeding programmes would be invaluable in ensuring that workers eat
healthily. Employers could collaborate with organizations to provide healthy foods on site,
maybe twice a week to sustain workers‘ health. In addition, canteens and vending machines
should contain healthy food alternatives to ensure availability and accessibility to healthy
food options. Moreover, the healthier options could be discounted to encourage purchase of
such foods.
Although the study made use of only 19 participants, and may not be enough for
generalisation, it provides useful evidence to develop measures that will go a long way in
96
improving the nutritional uptake of construction workers irrespective of the challenges they
face regarding the wages they are paid. In turn, their physical and mental health would be
sustained and safety performance records will invariably improve. Improving the H&S status
quo will benefit construction workers and their families, construction employers and
stakeholders as well as the economy as a whole since avoidable costs will be reduced,
productivity will be increased and Gross Domestic Product will ultimately increase.
Acknowledgement
This pilot study is part of an on-going Master‘s research project being funded by the
University of Johannesburg through the Global Excellence Scholarship. This project would
have been impossible without the support of the University.
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An exploratory study on the reduction of the cost of non-
conformance to projects requirements in the Swaziland
construction XN Mashwama and CO Aigbavboa
Department of Construction Management & Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
The construction industry is a key sector in the development and economic growth of
Swaziland. However, the industry has not escaped the challenges facing other countries
worldwide in terms of delivering construction projects of good quality as expected by the
clients and other stakeholders. This paper assesses the cost of non-conformance to quality in
Swaziland construction projects based on the perceptions Swaziland construction
professionals. The purpose of the study was to determine critical construction project success
criteria that can be used to reduce the cost of non-conformance to quality requirements in
construction projects in Swaziland. The data used in this paper were derived from both
primary and secondary sources. The secondary data was collected via a detailed review of
related literature. The primary data was collected through a well-structured questionnaire
which was distributed to construction stakeholders; 70 questionnaires were distributed and 50
were completed and returned, which was used for the study analysis- representing 71.0%
response rate. Data obtained from the questionnaire survey was analysed using descriptive
statistics procedures. Key findings from the study revealed that the cost of non-conformance
to quality requirements has an impact on construction projects; as funds have to be allocated
again to rework the poor quality job done by contractors on site. It was also found that there
are various success criteria that can be used to reduce the cost of non-conformance on
Swaziland construction projects. Hence, it is therefore recommended that the implementation
of quality management systems, defining quality objective at the beginning of the project and
encouraging team work in the project will assist in the prevention of poor quality works on
construction projects. Therefore, this study gives a rich insight into the critical success factors
for the reduction of cost of non-conformance to quality in Swaziland construction projects.
Keywords:
Construction, Cost of non-conformance, Quality, Success factors, Swaziland
Introduction
The construction industry is a key sector in the development and economic growth of
Swaziland. However, the construction industry in Swaziland has not escaped the challenges
facing other countries worldwide regarding the delivering of construction projects of good
quality as stipulated in the contracts and as expected by construction stakeholders. Quality is
defined as in ISO 9000 as the degree to which a set of inherent characteristics fulfils
requirement. Waje and Patil (n.d) informed that the cost of non-conformance to quality is
unbearable and hence defined the cost of non-conformance to quality as the cost associated
with the prevention, discovery, and resolving of construction project defects. These costs can
101
arise whether it is in the design stage, construction stage or handing over stage. Cost of non-
conformance to quality is the total cost incurred during the entire life cycle of construction
project in preventing non-conformance to owner requirements (Dale & Plunkett, 1999). Cost
of non-conformance to quality in building projects according to construction industry
development board 2006 report, it amount to 10-18% of the total cost of the project with
profit of less than 1-5%. Whilst in some other projects, the cost of non-conformance to
quality is 11%, which can be reduced by preventative expenditure of 2.5%. Also, it has been
found that about 50% of poor quality originates at the design stage, 40% relates to site work
including site management, poor information and 10% are due to materials problems. The
effects of poor quality work is seen through cost of reworks which is demolition of work
done that does not confirm to specification or reconstruction (Taneja, 2004).
Cost of non-conformance to quality in construction project is prevalent, due to failure in
preventing defects and wastages during construction work. Brisco et al. (2010) states that
there are four categories of costs; prevention cost (cost incurred to keep failure and appraisal
costs to a minimum); appraisal cost (cost incurred to determine the degree of conformance to
quality requirement); internal failure cost (cost associated with defects found before the
customer receives the product or service); and external failure cost (costs associated with
defects found after the customer/client receives the product or service). However, the cost of
quality remains hidden and eats up to 40% revenues of construction companies; hence, it is
like running a company which was once or trying to be successful to failure (Mahmood et al.,
2012). In order to prevent the Swaziland construction companies from failure to comply with
quality requirement, critical success factor had to be identified and addressed effectively to
reduce the cost of poor quality (COPQ). Cost of poor quality is a major concern in private
and public projects (Rumane, 2011). Hence, the present paper assesses the cost of poor
quality (COPQ) in construction projects based on the perception of construction professionals
in Swaziland.
Literature Review
The need for quality in the construction industry
Errors in construction sites occur frequently and can be costly for the contractors and for the
professional team also. Moreover, Waje and Patil (n.d) informs that 6-15% of construction
cost is found to be wasted due to rework and 5% of the construction cost is wasted during
maintenance of the building arising from poor quality construction jobs. Waje and Patil (n.d)
further informs that the nature of these errors are quit diverse, since 20-40% of site defects
have been caused by error during the construction phase; which are attributed to human
factors (unskilled workers or insufficient supervision of construction work). Also, the same
study found that 12% of the construction defects are based on material and system failures
which impact on the overall construction industry performance regardless of the geographical
location. In summary, a thoroughly inspection of the construction site needs to be improved
drastically as the above statistics shows that the main cause of errors come from human
involvement in the construction process and changing environment conditions resulting in
discrepancies in material behaviour which are uncontrollable. Hence it is critical to improve
the inspection and assessment of the quality of construction projects.
102
Causes of poor quality in construction projects
Quality has different meaning to different people, in terms of construction is very hard to
define, but for this paper it can be defined as conformance with requirement or
meeting/fulfilling client needs as per defined scope of works within budget, cost and
specified schedule (Jha, 2006). In the Swaziland construction projects, poor quality work is
prevalent, especially in public projects, the client is not always satisfactory with the quality of
constructed buildings. The primary reasons for poor quality in Swaziland construction are
mainly due to poor management as per findings below. Many authors confirm that Poor
management factors causing poor quality include insufficient supervision on site, labour
productivity and poor workmanship (Anderson, 1992; Kasun & Janaka, 2006; Jha &
Chockalingam, 2009). Another contributing factor is the orthodox tendering system of
choosing the lowest tenderer as per findings below. Hence, most emerging contractors in the
Swaziland construction deliberately under-price, which cuts into the contractors‘ profits,
hence, during construction, they tend to cut corners in order to make profit. Also, the lack of
experience and competency of labourers contribute to poor workmanship as per literature
(Kazaz & Birgonul, 2005; Kasun & Janaka, 2006). Many authors attest that Proper
construction management is very crucial for every construction project. Also contributing
factors such as limited time and cost in execution of construction projects are a major cause
of poor quality work. Lack of concern for the environment, late information, and poor
management of the design activities, inadequate or poor planning and low skills level among
the workers (Ali & Wen, 2011) are other contributing factors.
The Kingdom of Swaziland Construction Industry
The construction industry (CI) in many countries is a key component of economic growth.
For the developing countries the construction industry plays even a greater role in
development and poverty alleviation by providing access to basic services and transport
facilities (Odediran et al., 2012). The construction companies operating in Swaziland range
from small local contractors to major companies with the capability to carry out highly
specialised projects. The large contractors employ a minimum of 20,000 people (skilled and
unskilled workers). The range of work undertaken in the construction industry covers small
buildings, multi-level projects, roads, dams and infrastructure. Therefore, the CI is a key
source of work and income in the Kingdom of Swaziland. The overall contribution to the
Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the Swaziland construction industry over the past decade
average 6% since 2002, but it has since dropped down to 2.8% in 2013 (Swaziland Business
year book, 2002) due to problems hindering the performance of the construction sector.
Government is the major client in the Swaziland construction industry. The ministry of Public
Works and Transport is the Government‘s implementing agency on behalf of all ministries
with regard to all construction capital projects (Mvubu &Thwala, 2009). The Swaziland
Government through the ministry of Public Works and Transport also has a responsibility to
educate contractors and subcontractors about government‘s expectations of the quality of
work; the process of tendering and the information required (Mvubu &Thwala, 2009). The
Government of the kingdom of Swaziland, through its 25- year National Development
Strategy has identified the construction sector as a priority area to provide the impetus on
improving the social and economic development of the country. However, the industry has
not lived up to this expectation.
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Research Methodology
The data used in this paper were derived from both primary and secondary sources. The
primary data was obtained through the survey method, while the secondary data was derived
from the review of literature and archival records. The primary data was obtained through the
use of a structured questionnaire survey. This was distributed to a total of 70 construction
stakeholders that included; client (government), subcontractors, contractors, consultants‘
representative‘s quantity surveyors, civil engineers, architects, etc. who are currently
involved in construction of public projects in Swaziland. Out of the 70 questionnaires sent
out, 50 were received back representing 71.0% response rate. This was considered adequate
for the analysis based on the affirmation of Mcneill and Chapman (2005) since the result of a
survey could be considered as biased and of little value if the return rate was lower than
30.0% to 40.0%. The data were presented and analysed using frequency distributions and
percentages of all the respondents. The research was conducted between the months of June
to August, 2013.
Analysis
In this study, the analysis employed a simple descriptive statistics methodology. Also, a five
point Likert scale was used because it allows a range of responses to be generated including
neutral answers and does not force a decision as in the case of ―yes‖ or ―no‖ type of
questions. The question sought to determine critical construction project success criteria that
can be used to reduce the cost of non-conformance to quality (COPQ) in construction
projects, with regard to the information generated from the extant review of literature. The
adopted scale allowed individuals to express their opinion on how much they strongly agreed
or strongly disagreed with a particular statement as shown below.
Measurement scale:
1 = Strongly disagree
2 = Disagree
3 = Neutral
4 = Agree
5 = Strongly agree
The calculation of scores was done to establish the success criteria that can be used to reduce
the cost of quality in the construction industry in Swaziland. The respondents scored each
factors based on the measurement scales provided. The score made it possible to compare
how much level the respondents‘ agree with the factors or statement on the reduction of
COPQ. The five-point scale was transformed to a Mean Item Score (MIS) for each of the
statements. A weight was assigned to each response. The indices were then used to determine
the rank of each item. These rankings made it possible to cross compare the relative
importance of the statements as perceived by the respondents. The Mean Item Score (MIS) is
ranked in descending order (from the highest to the lowest).The Mean Item Score (MIS) was
derived from the following formula (Lim and Alum, 1995). MIS = 1n1 + 2n2 +3n3+ 4n4+ 5n5
∑N
Where;
n1 = number of respondents for strongly disagree
n2 = number of respondents for disagree
n3 = number of respondents for neutral
n4 = number of respondents for agree
n5 = number of respondents for strongly agree
104
N = Total number of respondents
Findings and Discussion
Findings from the 50 respondents revealed that 41% were males while 59% were female.
Further findings revealed that 50% of the respondents were quantity surveyors, 20% were
civil/structural engineers, 18.0% were architects, 10% were construction managers and only
2% were builders (contractors). The findings revealed that 96% of the respondents have more
than 10 years working experience in the construction industry. Also, it was found that 71% of
the respondents were involved in building construction, 24% were involved in civil works
and only 5% were involved in other building activities. The statistical mode for value of
projects undertaken in the past 5 years revealed that more than 71% of the respondents have
executed more than five million Lilangeni (SZL), an equivalent of $479,177.90. Hence the
responds opinion will genuinely add to the value of the study objectives which can be
summarised as determining the critical success factors that can reduce the cost of poor quality
in construction projects.
Causes of poor quality in construction projects in Swaziland
Based on the ranking of the weighted average of the mean item score (MIS) for the listed
causes of poor quality, it was found that the most dominant causes of poor quality in
construction projects in Swaziland are: ineffective monitoring and feedback by project team
members (MIS=3.93), reluctance in timely decision by top management (MIS=3.88); poor
human resource management and labour strike (MIS=3.86); and government‘s way of
procuring-choosing the lowest bidder (MIS=3.76). Others include: reluctance in timely
decision by top management and size and value of the project being large as shown in Table
1. Table 1: Factors causing poor quality
Factors causing the cost of non-conformance to quality MIS Rank
Ineffective monitoring and feedback by Project Members 3.93 1
A lack of planning and coordination 3.93 1
Reluctance in timely decision by top management 3.88 2
Poor human resource management and labour strike 3.85 3
Government‘s way of procuring-choosing the lowest bidder 3.76 4
Reluctance in timely decision by top management 3.29 5
Size and value of the project being large 3.28 6
Critical success factors for the reduction of the cost of non-conformance to quality
Findings relating to this aspect of the study were sub-divided into five construction stages,
which include: planning, organising, Executing and Monitoring stages respectively. From the
questionnaire survey, it was found under the planning stage factors that defining quality
objectives (MIS=4.39); effective site leadership (MIS=4.20); and team development and
deploying skilled work force (MIS=4.14) are the criteria needed for the reduction of COPQ
during the planning stage as shown on Table 2. Whilst, it was also found that cash flow
planning and defining measurement and testing procedures are not critical in the successful
reduction of the COPQ. Furthermore, findings relating to the construction organising stage
success factors revealed that defining quality control mechanism (MIS=4.12); team
development and deploying skilled work force (MIS=4.10); and the provision of effective
project management process (MIS=4.02) are the critical criteria that will reduce the COPQ of
construction projects in Swaziland.
105
Table 2: Success factors for the reduction of the cost of non-conformance to quality (planning stage)
Planning stage factors MIS Rank
Defining quality objectives (standards and specifications) 4.39 1
Providing effective leadership 4.20 2
Team development and deploying skilled work force 4.13 3
Cash flow planning 3.85 4
Defining measurement and testing procedures 3.34 5
Others include: use of integrated procurement systems and training, development and quality
awareness of HR respectively as shown on Table 3.
Table 3: Success factors for the reduction of the cost of non-conformance to quality (Organising stage)
Organising stage factors MIS Rank
Defining quality control mechanism 4.12 1
Team development and deploying skilled work force 4.10 2
Providing effective project management process 4.02 3
Use of integrated procurement systems 3.71 7
Training, development and quality awareness of HR 3.68 8
Similarly, the executing stage success factors revealed that team work (MIS=4.32) followed
by the provision of effective leadership (MIS=4.20) and the optimum use of resources
(MIS=4.05) were ranked highest. The least ranked factors at the executing stage include:
exercising transparency in procurement process and transactions and protecting stakeholder
rights as shown in Table 4 respectively, as the score indicated that these alleged classified
success factors could not influence the reduction of COPQ in Swaziland construction
projects.
Table 4: Success factors for the reduction of the cost of non-conformance to quality (Executing stage)
Executing stage factors MIS Rank
Team work 4.32 1
Providing effective leadership 4.20 2
Optimum use of resources 4.05 3
Transparency in procurement process and transactions 3.63 8
Protecting stakeholder rights 3.51 9
Lastly, the findings on the monitoring stage success factors revealed that fulfilling health and
safety requirement (MIS=4.10); measuring performance of activities on critical path
(MIS=3.93); Measuring of executed works (MIS=3.85) and measurement of productivity of
resources measure variation in planned and actual resource utilization, were ranked the least
respectively, respondent felt that they were not influential to the reduction of COPQ.
Table 5: Success factors for the reduction of the cost of non-conformance to quality (Monitoring stage)
Monitoring stage success factors MIS Rank
Fulfilling health and safety requirements 4.10 1
Measuring performance of activities on critical path 3.93 2
Measurement of executed works 3.85 3
Measurement of productivity of resources 3.68 6
Measure Variation in planned and actual resource utilization 3.61 7
Respondent also ranked the last category of controlling stage, where by improving the
productivity of resources and initial accountability (MIS=4.05); Improving the quality of
input materials and resources (MIS=3.98); Reducing the gap in planned and actual schedule
(MIS=3.85); and reducing the gap in planned and actual scope and reducing the gap in
106
planned and actual resource utilization (MIS=3.73 & 3.49) were both ranked least as shown
in Table 5.2.5.
Effects of cost of non-conformance to quality (COPQ)
Table 6 revealed that cost overruns was the highest factor with an (MIS=4.26); Late
completion and penalty to contractor (MIS=4.24); Delay trades sequence (MIS=4.20) and
disputes (MIS= 4.15). However, project programme (MIS=3.68), Training (MIS=3.63) and
production rate slows down (MIS=3.51), were ranked last respectively.
Table 6: Effects of the COPQ
Conclusion and Recommendations
The findings presented a lot of factors affecting poor quality and what the respondent thought
where the main causes boiled down to Management related actions. The study suggests that if
Management played their vital roles from the beginning (inception) of a project then the cost
of non-conformance to quality would be reduced. The study further reveals that during the
controlling stages of the project respondent showed that the construction professionals do not
agree that measurements and testing procedure could reduce the cost of poor quality (COPQ),
but rather defining the quality objectives during the planning stages is what is thought could
help reduce the COPQ .The findings furthermore revealed that the effect that poor quality has
on construction project is a negative impact on the economy and construction projects.
Construction professional agreed that rework has a ripple effect on project outcomes as
opposed to doing it right the 1st time. The result also revealed that Cost overruns also affect
the projects negatively as the client would now have to pay extra for materials, labour, to fix
what could have been done right in the first place. The study suggests that the causes of
COPQ should be used as guidance to achieving the success factors needed for the reduction
of COPQ. The results of this study have further prove that the cost of non-conformance to
quality (COPQ) has a negative impact on the project and construction companies as
productivity, additional work and repair, loss of the clients‘ confidence in contractor which
may eventually put the contractors out of business are some of the main ripple effects of cost
of non-conformance to quality. Success factors are easy to achieve if the project objectives
are laid down from the beginning the project participants will therefore know what is
expected of them.
It is recommended that the implementation of quality management systems in construction
projects such as (TQM) Total Quality Management system in which they will find roots to
the cause of problems by planning effectively and implementing an organisational structure.
TQM will involve the client from the beginning till the end of the project reducing change
orders. Training of the project team participants is also an important factor, as the team
Effects of COPQ MIS Rank
Cost overruns 4.26 1
Late completion 4.24 2
Penalty to contactor 4.24 2
Delay trades sequence 4.20 3
Disputes 4.15 4
Project programme 3.68 11
Training 3.63 12
Production rate slows down 3.51 13
107
members will know what is expected of them in terms of executing and delivering the final
product without compromising on quality. Lastly involving all the team participants and
promoting the spirit of teamwork on projects can also help reduce the cost of non-
conformance to quality as the communication amongst team participants will be the same as
they will be communicating the same goal
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108
Quality Management practices in South African
subsidised public housing schemes RM O‘Maker, CO Aigbavboa
and WD Thwala
Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
The quality of housing delivered in subsidised public housing schemes is a major problem in
South Africa, and has been widely documented. The characteristics of contracting Small and
Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), who are regularly awarded tenders in this sector, are
shown to hinder quality performance. This paper investigates the quality management (QM)
practices amongst SME contractors in the Gauteng low income residential sector. The
primary data were collected through a structured questionnaire, distributed among active
general building contractors in the CIDB register of contractors in Gauteng. Findings derived
reveal that QM practices amongst SME contractors frequently included the general elements
of QM, with the exception of quality audit procedures. Contractors also consulted with
building and project specific standards and specifications in favour of South African National
Standards (SANS), National Building Regulations (NBR) and the National Home Builders
Registration Council (NHBRC) home building manual. Lastly, inspection was favoured over
other statistical Quality Control (QC) tools and formal QMS‘s such as ISO 9001.The study
emphasised the need for regulatory bodies to enforce compliance to SANS, NBR and
NHBRC requirements among SMEs. Furthermore, despite the majority of SMEs reportedly
possessing the general elements of QM internally; reactive based QM practices are more
frequently adopted during project execution – a situation not conducive to continuous quality
improvement.
Keywords:
Construction Industry, Quality Management, Subsidised Housing, South Africa
Introduction
The post-apartheid era in South Africa has seen many housing policy and legislative
framework initiatives being put in place with the task of delivering adequate provision of
housing to the poor. Housing delivery in South Africa can be characterized as being one of
three different types, that being: public funded, private sector or owner provided (Aigbavboa,
2013). The provision of public housing in Gauteng, like other provinces, is delivered through
government financed state subsidy mechanisms. The beneficiaries of the subsidized housing
units include citizens who are pre-qualified as disadvantaged demographic groups.
Beneficiaries of subsidized housing have to adhere to the terms and conditions that go
together with the units and any associated infrastructure that are transferred to them.
However, due to various problems that are inherent in subsidized housing, many beneficiaries
chose to sell or rent their units in order to move nearer to informal settlements and their
places of work (Tissington, 2010). The delivery of low income housing to the poor has been
plagued with quality issues, resulting in poor levels of client and end user satisfaction.
109
Numerous research reports and industry publications bear testimony to the quality problem
evident in this sector, where some focus on both client and end user perspectives. The
internal characteristics of SMEs who operate in this sector, as well as external factors both
play a role in hampering quality performance. The QM practices among the SMEs are not
widely documented, therefore this study aimed to further explore these practices within the
Gauteng low income residential sector. The study aimed to establish the current QM practices
that are adopted by the SMEs internally and during project execution.
Quality Management Practices among housing contractors
Research into QM Practices in the construction industry is well documented from global
perspectives. The body of literature offers insight into how the adoption of QM practices has
evolved in the industry, and highlights regions such as Japan that possess a somewhat
synergetic culture, where absolute commitment to quality has lead to world class
performance in this area (Abdul-Aziz, 2002; Xiao & Proverbs, 2002). The quality delivery in
the housing industries however, appears to lag behind that of the industries as a whole. A
discussion of the QM practices employed by contractors in the global construction industries,
with a particular focus on housing follows.
Japan
The quality performance of Japanese construction contractors is arguably unmatched, which
has led to general consensus placing Japan as global leaders in this aspect (Abdul-Aziz, 2002;
Xiao & Proverbs, 2002). Studies show that almost all Japanese contractors have obtained
mandatory IS0 9001 certification (Xiao & Proverbs, 2002), and the Japanese are seen to
global leaders in TQM implementation within their local construction industry (Abdul-Aziz,
2002). Xiao and Proverbs (2002) attribute the superior quality performance to an inherent
culture of quality that has been embedded in the hearts and minds of the Japanese. The
quality focused culture, has facilitated delivery of high quality projects even within foreign
operating environments that has been shown to be a factor which greatly determines the
success of TQM applications (Abdul-Aziz, 2002). The housing sector has in the past however
reflected levels of quality inconsistent with Japan‘s current benchmark status. According to
Noguchi and Poterba (1994), historical levels of quality of housing are not on par with that in
the United States of America (USA). Reasons for this are primarily attributable to housing
policy focus on mass quantity delivery at the expense of quality. Recent focuses have
however been targeted at quality, which is undoubtedly reflected by the high levels of ISO
9001 accreditation among contractors in recent years (Xiao & Proverbs, 2002).
Singapore
The awareness and use of QM tools, techniques and models such as TQM and ISO 9001 is
evident in Singapore (Chin & Poh, 1999). Firms in the property management industry tend to
view ISO 9001 certification as a preparatory step toward TQM (Chin & Poh, 1999),
contradictory to the views held in other studies (Ahmed et al., 2005; Joubert et al., 2005),
where an opposite view is evident. Quality of construction in Singapore, is monitored and
assessed by the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) that established the
Construction Quality Assessment System (CONQUAS) in 1989 (Kam & Tang, 1997; Chin &
Poh, 1999; Milne, 2006, KZN Human Settlements, 2010). Kam and Tang (1997) further list
Building Quality Assessment Services (BQAS), which is based upon CONQUAS, as an
evaluation system for private sector building projects The CONQUAS system aimed to
improve quality performance of contractors and direct them toward ISO 9001 certification
110
(Kam & Tang, 1997). The CONQUAS system, used in conjunction with a premium scheme
for public or housing projects, encouraged high quality scores among contractors in
Singapore. The premium scheme offered a financial incentive and tendering preference for
contractors who consistently achieved high CONQUAS scores. The scores of contractors
steadily rose between 1984 and 1995, indicating an improvement of QM practices among
contractors.
Hong Kong
A high level of ISO 9001 certified contractors have been identified within the Hong Kong
construction industry (Ahmed et al., 2005). Lau and Tang (2009) argue that ISO 9001 is more
readily implemented among Hong Kong contractors as opposed to TQM. The findings of Lau
and Tang (2009) show that all contractors are aware of QM principles and up to 97% of
contractors have achieved ISO 9001 accreditation, of which 38,9% are SMEs. Ahmed et al.
(2005) attribute the high level of certification present, to the requirements imposed by the
Hong Kong Housing Authority (HKSA) in 1989, whereby all contractors had to be ISO 9001
accredited as a pre-qualification requirement to tendering for public housing projects. The
HKHA adapted the CONQUAS system used in Singapore, into the Performance Assessment
Scoring System (PASS) and Maintenance Assessment Scoring System (MASS), which
evaluates the conformance levels of contractors in delivery of housing (Tam et al., 2000).
Moreover, Tam et al. (2000) postulate that primarily large contractors achieve PASS
specified quality levels, and that opportunities in the Hong Kong private sector have reduced
interest in bidding for public projects.
Lessons learnt through Global experiences
Exploration of the global body of literature reveals a number of lessons to be learnt by local
contractors. A tender incentive based contractor quality assessment system such as
CONQUAS, together with a direct financial incentive such as that advocated in PASS could
be developed and tested in the local industry. The use of incentive based systems such as
these have been shown to motivate contractors to consistently attain targeted quality levels
(Tam et al., 2000). It is also evident that QM practices in low income housing lags behind
other construction sub-sectors even in highly regarded quality achieving countries such as
Japan. QM based research should therefore further prioritize the low income housing sectors,
in order to bridge the knowledge gap between this sector and others.
Quality concerns in South African low income housing
Over the years, the CIDB has shown steady overall improvements in the quality delivered by
South African contractors (CIDB, 2012). However, according to client satisfaction levels, the
low income residential sector remains the lowest ranking in terms of quality. Defects and
subsequent rework are the result of the shoddy work frequently observed in this sector. The
causes of poor quality performance have been attributed to a number of factors in the design,
procurement and construction phase. Fraudulent tender processes (KZN Human Settlements,
2010), poor workmanship (Aigbavboa & Thwala, 2013; Gibbon, 2010; Zunguzane et al.,
2012; Magagula. & Mnisi, 2010; Kota, 2010; Department of Human Settlements, 2010) and
the use of emerging contractors (Alink, 2003) are some of the commonly reported factors all
of which contribute to poor quality performance.
111
Contractors’ methods of managing quality in South Africa
The QM methods employed by SME contractors in the low income residential sector can
only be deemed insufficient and immature due to the widely reported dissatisfaction with the
end product delivered by such contractors. Research relating to the intrinsic QM practices
used by contractors operating within this sector is however not widely available, indicating a
clear need for further exploration in this area. Moreover, the body of literature in the local
arena does highlight areas of QM that are lacking among the contractors, compounded by low
managerial and technical capacities. Furthermore, the external parties who are mandated to
protect the interests of the end users appear to be incompetent (Mpambane, 2008). Therefore,
the literature reveals that SME contractors are not adopting formal QM practices as they do
not possess the necessary skills or are lacking top management leadership to drive the
process. The lack of QM capacity is understandable due to the inherent characteristics of
SME and emerging contractors, who require much growth and development before reaching
adequate competences in QM practices that have been demonstrated by contractors abroad.
Research Methodology
A descriptive survey approach was deemed appropriate to gather data for the empirical study,
due to time and cost constraints, as well as a widely spread target population. The
development of a structured questionnaire was guided by secondary literature based findings,
which provided a theoretical framework from which to construct the survey instrument. The
target population included contractors, listed on the CIDB register of contractors in Gauteng.
Active general building contractors registered in the categories of four (4), five (5) and six (6)
were targeted for the study. Subsequently, the sample was drawn using stratified random
sampling, after which the survey was administered through the online survey platform Survey
Monkey. The survey was administered in three consecutive rounds in an attempt to elicit a
maximum response rate. Despite these efforts, the survey only yielded 41 responses,
representing a 15.7% response rate. The low response rate is typical of the questionnaire
survey method, and similar results have been obtained in numerous other construction
industry surveys (Rahman & Chileshe, 2012). Therefore, it is acknowledged that
generalisation of the findings derived from this study may be limited.
The raw data were captured and analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences
(SPSS) in a descriptive statistics manner. The Mean Item Score (MIS) index was calculated
for the questionnaire test items where five-point Likert scales were used as measurement
criteria. All responses are weighted according to the relative Likert scale response from
which ranks could be allocated for each test item; indicating the importance of that particular
test item. The MIS index is computed as the ratio between the sums of the actual individual
scores in comparison to the sum of the highest possible scores of each test item. Thus, on a
five point scale the maximum possible score would be the total number of respondents
multiplied by a factor of five. The MIS for each test item was ranked from highest to lowest,
and in accordance with the formula presented by Lim and Alum (1995):
MIS = 1n1+2n2+3n3+4n4+5n5
∑N
Where:
n1 = Never
n2 = Seldom
n3 = Sometimes
112
n4 = Often
n5 = Always
N = Total no. of responses
Findings and Discussion
SME internal QM structures
The internal QM practices of SMEs were measured against the generic areas of QM, as
described by Kerzner (2006). Findings show that the SME contractors possess a Quality
policy (78%) and objectives (84%) stemming from the policy. Quality Assurance (QA)
(78%) and QC (72%) procedures also seem to be in place, as well as project specific quality
plans (72%). Quality audit procedures however were only reported among 63% of
respondents possibly indicating less emphasis is given to this area. Chileshe (2007)
emphasizes the need for quality auditing as it is an essential element of TQM. Furthermore,
Zeng et al. (2007) list ineffective auditing procedures as being a leading barrier to the
continuous improvement element of ISO 9001. Table 1 summarises the findings for this
section.
Table 1: The presence of generic QM elements in SMEs
Generic QM elements % Response (%) SD Rank
Quality Objectives 84.4% 0.48 1
A Quality policy 78.1% 0.50 2
Quality Assurance procedures 78.1% 0.50 2
Project specific quality plans 71.9% 0.61 3
Quality Control procedures 71.9% 0.72 4
Quality Audit procedures 62.5% 0.68 5
Standards and specifications used during low income housing project execution
The findings relating to the standards and specifications used by contractors during the
construction of low income housing are somewhat concerning. There seems to be a greater
focus on building specifications (MIS = 4.48; R = 1), and project specific standards and
specifications (MIS = 4.26; R = 2), which on the surface may appear very normal and what
can be expected of all contractors. The concern however lies with the less frequently used
items, SANS (MIS = 3.90; R = 4), the NBR (MIS = 3.72; R = 5) and the NHBRC home
building manual (MIS = 3.63; R = 6) which implements the NBR. Thus, if the project and
building specifications are not frequently being based on statutory guidelines such as SANS
or the NBR, naturally the likelihood of meeting statutory quality requirements will decrease.
Clearly, the use of the NHBRC home building needs to be driven by the regulatory
mechanisms such as the NHBRC, among all registered home builders. All contractors who
undertake work in the sector need to be registered with the NHBRC. However, the research
findings shows only 76% are registered, reflecting a situation that is particularly prevalent in
the low income housing sector (CIDB, 2011). Furthermore, the use of non-NHBRC
registered contractors is shown to be a contributory factor leading to poor quality (KZN
Human Settlements, 2010). A greater focus on the levels of conformance to NBR, through
the use of the NHBRC home building manual, as well as SANS needs to be driven by project
stakeholders from design phase through to handover, on all housing projects. Overall, a need
for more stringent control by regulatory bodies over contractors in this sector is evident.
Table 2 portrays a summary of the findings.
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Table 2: Standards and specifications used by SMEs during low income housing project execution
Standards and specifications MIS SD Rank
Building specifications 4.48 1.20 1
Project specific standards and specifications 4.26 1.21 2
CIDB codes of good practice 4.13 1.36 3
South African National Standards (SANS) 3.90 1.51 4
The National Building Regulations (NBR) 3.72 1.46 5
NHBRC Home Building Manual 3.63 1.43 6
SMEs methods of managing quality during low income housing project execution
The findings relating to the various methods employed by contractors to manage quality on
low income housing projects yielded interesting results. Site inspection was the highest
ranking item (MIS = 4.38; R = 1) and the most commonly used QM method. SME
contractors therefore favour inspection, the most basic tool of QC; Inspection is however a
reactive QM approach as defects is only identified ‗downstream‘ after already being created.
QA Systems and (MIS = 3.84; R = 2) and QCP‘s (MIS = 3.81; R = 3) ranked second and
third respectively. The lowest ranking items included statistical QC tools and techniques
(MIS = 3.20; R = 8) and formal QM approaches, ISO 9001 (MIS = 2.96; R = 9) and an IQMS
(MIS = 2.83; R = 10). The adoption of formal QM approaches such as ISO 9001, is
extremely low, a finding supported by a study conducted by Joubert et al. (2005). The
situation is a contrast to such as Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong and Australia. Almost all
contractors in Japan (Xiao & Proverbs, 2002) and Hong Kong (Ahmed et al., 2005) are ISO
9001 certified, and in Australia (Pheng & Shiua, 2000) and Singapore (Kam & Tang, 2009)
certification forms part of pre-qualification criteria for public sector bidding. The USA
however reflects a different situation where only 10% of home builders possess ISO 9001
certification (Leonard, 2010). In summary, South African SME and emerging contractors
should progress toward international QM trends, where proactive and preventative
approaches yield greater results. Table 3 presents the findings as discussed.
Table 3: SMEs methods of managing quality during low income housing project execution
QM Methods MIS SD Rank
Site inspection 4.38 1.24 1
Quality Assurance Systems 3.84 1.32 2
A Quality Control Plan (QCP) 3.81 1.45 3
The company‘s own non-certified Quality Management System 3.58 1.43 4
Quality circles 3.55 1.48 5
Integrated Quality Assurance and Quality Control interface systems 3.23 1.48 6
Quality improvement teams 3.23 1.50 7
Statistical Quality Control Tools and Techniques 3.20 1.52 8
The ISO 9001 Quality Management System 2.96 1.62 9
An Integrated Quality Management System, which comprises of ISO 9001, ISO 14000
and/or ISO 18000 2.83 1.58 10
Conclusion and Recommendations
Low income subsidised housing schemes in South Africa are known to be plagued by quality
problems, brought about by numerous factors, one of which is the use of SME contractors.
Industry and media publications bear evidence of the quality problems; however the QM
practices adopted by the SME contractors internally and during project execution is not
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widely documented. The study presented in this paper explored the QM practices adopted by
SME contractors in the Gauteng low income residential sector.
The study revealed that contractors generally possess the fundamental QM structures
internally, with the exception of quality auditing procedures. Quality audit procedures have
been shown to be a vital element of any QM structure, therefore greater focus should be
given to this area. Furthermore, SANS, the NBR and the NHBRC Home building manual are
less frequently used than building and project specific standards and specifications. A need
for more stringent control by regulatory bodies over contractors in this sector is evident.
Lastly, SME contractors tend to favour reactive based QM approaches such as inspection
over more formal QMS‘s and statistical tools and techniques. The results of the study provide
a broader understanding of the QM practices employed by contracting SMEs in Gauteng.
Furthermore, the identification of several possible avenues for further research in the field has
been realised. The findings are exploratory at this stage; therefore similar studies could be
conducted in other provinces, to develop generalized findings for South Africa. Also, a
qualitative based study could reveal deeper insights into the concepts explored in this study.
The differing perspectives of clients, the design team, or management team could be used to
obtain an overall perspective of the QM practices adopted by contractors in the sector.
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Determinants of employee job satisfaction and the
influence of job dissatisfaction on absenteeism and
employee turnover, in the Gauteng Province MP Lesailane, CO Aigbavboa and WD Thwala
Department of Construction Management & Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
This study examines the determinants of construction job satisfaction and the influence of
dissatisfaction on absenteeism and employee turnover. This is because it has been observed
that many construction projects are facing challenges in respect of delivering defective work
not completed on time and within budget. And job satisfaction has been identified as one of
the factors contributing to these challenges. The study was conducted with reference to
existing theoretical literature and the use of a structured questionnaire survey. The
questionnaire survey was distributed amongst 50 professional team members in the South
African construction industry. From the 50 questionnaires distributed, 40 usable
questionnaires were received back, which formed the basis of the analysis for the study. The
findings reveal that the most important determinants of construction job satisfaction are: work
that allows personal growth; work that allows development; employment security; adequate
salary; feedback from boss on task performance; opportunity for promotions and challenging
work. Also, the findings suggested that, the aspects associated with job dissatisfaction, in
respect of: salary, incentives, professional growth, working relationship as well as
enforcement of fair policies, were seen to be the most influential factors of absenteeism and
employee turnover in the South African construction industry. Additionally, this study carries
a greater value in contributing to the existing literature of job satisfaction based on younger
construction professional members, since the majority of the participants in this study were
respondents falling under the age group of 21-25 years of age.
Keywords:
Absenteeism, Construction, Employee Turnover, Job Satisfaction, Job Dissatisfaction
Introduction
Within each and every sector in South Africa, new companies are established every year and
this may lead to an increase in competition within those sectors. Therefore, it is the
manager‘s task to ensure that employees within a given organization have the drive to
perform their tasks to reach the organizational goals in order to have a competitive advantage
over other organizations. According to Deeprose (2003), as a manager, there are many ways
that one can use to create an environment where employees are most likely to feel motivated
to take actions that contribute to organizational goals. However, senior management in a
given organization tends to ignore the issue of motivation of employees in the workplace.
Moreover, some find it difficult to address the issue of employee motivation in their
organization since it entails studying behaviour of each and every employee and identifying
causes of such behaviours.
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Bernold and AbouRizk (2010) emphasized that construction is performed by different
employees including labourers, engineers, specialists, which have their own reasons to
perform in a particular way with varying degrees of energy and enthusiasm. The ability to
have a comprehensive understanding of basic things that keep an employee motivated thereby
improving their level of satisfaction, will have a significant positive impact in their
performance of job tasks. The study illustrates that when employees are happy and satisfied
in their jobs, their level of motivation is high and they perform at peak all the time (Tyilana,
2005).
Moreover, an employee will only be committed to their job if they are happy about their
duties and feeling content with rendering job tasks. If employers want to inspire people to
give their best and most committed effort in support of the organizational goals, they should
relate those goals to something more compelling than simple satisfaction, something that
people spend a lifetime pursuing: happiness (Walters, 2010). In their book, Bernold and
AbouRizk (2010) argue that personal desires are the fundamental motivation behind all
human actions. In that regard, it can be said that individual needs, serve as a form of
motivation that will determine a level of satisfaction an employee may have with regard to
their job. This is because Lavender (1996) has argued that an individual‘s behaviour is
affected by their motivation. Hence, it is important to fulfill those needs as this will help to
stimulate an individual‘s interest in their job and it will in turn serve as motivation.
In the research conducted by CIDB (2013), it was observed that many construction projects
in South Africa are still facing challenges such as client‘s dissatisfaction with work rendered
by contractors in respect of delivering defective work not completed within budget and on
time. This may be due to experiences of absenteeism and employee turnover within a given
project. As a result; these two factors according to Rojas (2008) tend to reduce productivity
as construction industry has traditionally paid little attention to these problems. Rojas (2008)
mentioned job satisfaction among other factors as determinants of absenteeism and turnover.
In that regard, Schaffer (2001) argued that in order to achieve high productivity, members of
management as well as the entire workforce, need to be highly motivated, positive, and
totally committed. It is because of the aforementioned challenges that this paper attempts to
explore the concept of motivation and job satisfaction. The aim of this paper is to explore the
determinants of job satisfaction in the construction industry as well as the influence of factors
leading to dissatisfaction on absenteeism and employee turnover. Firstly, this paper starts
with an overview of determinants of job satisfaction. Subsequently, a brief discussion of the
influence of dissatisfaction on absenteeism and employee turnover will be provided.
Determinants of Job Satisfaction in the Construction Industry
There is an abundance of empirical studies in the area of job satisfaction in the construction
industry. For instance, in the research conducted by Thwala et al. (2012), the findings reveal
that the construction workers highly ranked physiological needs (such as tea or lunch break),
esteem needs (such as self respect, autonomy, achievement and recognition) and safety needs
(such as job security, shelter and protection against danger) as motivators which led to high
level of their job satisfaction. However, this does not agree with the findings of the research
conducted by Bowen and Cattel (2008), where respondents (quantity surveyors) ranked self-
esteem needs (such as achievement, promotions, opportunity to do challenging and creative
work, opportunity to do varied and non-repetitive work) the least as the determinants of job
satisfaction. Surprisingly, the findings of Thwala et al. (2012), the workers ranked social
needs (such as a feeling of being a member of the team and assisting co-workers) the least as
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determinant of job satisfaction. However, in the study of Bowen and Cattel (2008),
respondents‘ highly ranked social need (such as feeling a member of a team and participating
in decision making) as determinants of job satisfaction.
Nevertheless, the study of job satisfaction of professionals within the construction industry
conducted by Yirenkyi-Fianko and Chilese (2012), agreed with the findings of Thwala et al.
(2012) , whereby the construction professionals ranked physiological needs (quality of life),
safety needs (personal health) and self-actualization needs (personal development) as the
most important determinants of job satisfaction, however, self-esteem (work itself including
autonomy, recognition and achievement) was being ranked the least, together with social
needs (relationship with supervisor and workmates). Again, the study of Bowen and Cattel
(2008), contradicts with these findings, whereby the respondents (quantity surveyors) highly
ranked social needs (low degree of supervision by supervisor, and feedback from supervisor
on performance) as determinants of job satisfaction.
Kanderee and Chaudhry (2012), found that respondents ranked salary, nature of the job, job
flexibility, job security, direct manager‘s behaviour and company leadership as factors that
strongly influence their job satisfaction, while other factors such as place of work, other
benefits, living environment and name of company , were ranked the least. Highly ranked
factors such as: nature of job, salary and job flexibility as esteem needs and job security as
security needs, seem to be agreeing with the findings of the study of Thwala et al. (2012).
But, direct manager‘s behaviour as social needs, contradicts their findings. Moreover, the
factors that were ranked the least such as living environment and place of work as
physiological needs and other benefits as esteem needs, contradict with the findings of
Thwala et al. (2012), whereby physiological needs were ranked as the strongest determinants
of job satisfaction.
In the study by Onukwube (2012) the findings show that job satisfaction increases with age
and it was concluded that older quantity surveyors experience greater job satisfaction than
younger quantity surveyors, since they have job experience, tenure, job security and high
income. Also, the findings showed that male quantity surveyors were more satisfied with
their job than were their female counterparts (Onukwube, 2012). Similarly, the findings show
that difference in educational level also affects job satisfaction, whereby quantity surveyors
with postgraduate degrees were significantly more satisfied with their present job, promotion,
co-workers, supervision, pay and overall job satisfaction than were quantity surveyors with
bachelor‘s degree (Onukwube, 2012).
Job dissatisfaction versus absenteeism and employee turnover
Labour costs for contractors can reach as much as 40% to 60% of total construction costs
(Rojas, 2008). In that regard, it is of paramount importance that contractors ensure that each
employee has ability to perform their tasks to the contractor‘s expectations, as their
performance contributes to productivity. According to Rojas (2008), research has found that
absenteeism and employee turnover reduce productivity, while the construction industry is
traditionally paying little attention to these problems. In order to address this issue,
contractors need to understand why employees are deciding not to come to work and the
reason for some of them quitting their jobs.
According to Hadebe (2001), when employees are dissatisfied with their jobs, they try to find
ways of reducing exposure. That is, to stay away from the jobs. In addition, Rojas (2008) has
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informed that researchers agree that companies can divide the factors causing absenteeism
and turnover into controllable and uncontrollable. And controllable factors include: site
management capabilities, teamwork, excessive rework, and job satisfaction (Rojas, 2008).
Similarly, Horner and Talhouni (1984) identified factors such as unsafe working conditions
and lack of job security as having effect on absenteeism.
In addition, job satisfaction also emerges as an important factor in turnover (Rojas, 2008).
Therefore, it can be deduced that job dissatisfaction have an influence on absenteeism and
employee turnover. This is because, Rojas (2008) has identified factors such as organizational
factors (pay, company size, responsibilities, tasks, and worker commitment) and worker‘s
personal factors (age and tenure) as having effects on absenteeism and employee turnover.
Furthermore, the research conducted by Sichani (2010) concluded the following as top 10
causes of absenteeism: long commuting hours / distance to jobsite, transportation issues to
site, lack of recognition/incentives; personal safety concerns, child care, illness/school, other
family responsibility, already planned time off, bad weather for working, personal
appointment, personal injury/illness. Moreover, Cheney (1984) identified the organizational
factors (structure, participation, consideration, and feedback) that affected productivity and
job satisfaction; while, Tnay et al. (2013) have concluded that pay and supervisory support
act as a crucial factor in affecting employee‘s turnover intention. In that regard, it is
important that employees get involved in the decision making process, thereby making them
to feel like part of the team as this is important in reducing absenteeism and employee
turnover within the organization.
Research Methodology
The study was conducted with reference to existing theoretical literature and the use of a
structured questionnaire survey. The existing literature was obtained from published and
unpublished sources. Since the population surveyed was already identified, the researcher
adopted the stratified sampling. In this type of non-random sampling, a researcher first
divides the population into subpopulations (strata) on the basis of supplementary information
and subsequently, the researcher draws a random sample from each subpopulation (Neuman,
2000). The researcher divided the population into strata according to the types of professions,
such as: construction management, construction project management, quantity surveying,
structural engineering and architecture. This allows each member within each subpopulation
to have equal chance to be selected.
The population comprised of professional team members within both consulting and
contracting firms, working in Johannesburg, South Africa. The respondents were randomly
selected from each subpopulation to make up a sample of 50. However, due to limitation of
time and low response rate, the final sample size used for analysis purpose, based on the
acceptable questionnaires completed by the respondents, was 40. A five point Likert scale
was used to determine the factors that have influence on the construction job satisfaction as
well as the causes of absenteeism and employee turnover. For the purpose of this study,
frequency and mean item score (from central tendency) will be used to analyse data.
Findings and Discussion
Out 40 respondents, the findings reveal that more than half (52.5%) of the total number of the
respondents were female and the male respondents were about 47.5%. Also, in terms of age
group, it was found that that the majority (47.5%) of respondents were between the age of 21
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and 25 years; 20% were between 26-30 years; 17.5% were between 31-35 years with 17.50%;
2.5% were between 41-45 years; and 5% were above 55 years. There were no respondents
that fall under the age group of 46-50 and 51-55 years. Furthermore, the findings reveal that
the half (50%) of respondents have diploma, while 45% have bachelor‘s degree, and 5% have
master‘s degree. And in terms of years of experience, 7.5 % have less than a year of
experience, 62.5% have 1-5 years of experience, 17.5% have 6-10 years of experience, 5%
have 11-15 years of experience and l7.5% have more than 16 years of experience. Lastly, of
40 respondents that participated, 70% of them were quantity surveyors, 5% were construction
managers, 5% were construction project managers, 2.5% were structural engineers, 10% were
construction project managers and 7.5% were architects.
Determinants of construction job satisfaction
Table 1 indicates that the most important determinant of construction job satisfaction in
South Africa, in the Johannesburg area is, work that allows personal growth. The other top
ten factors which the respondents have ranked in order of their importance are: work that
allows development; employment security; adequate salary; feedback from boss on
performance; opportunity for promotions; opportunity for challenging work; recognition from
boss for doing a good job; good working conditions; having control over own work.
These findings concur with the findings of Thwala et al. (2012) where it was found that
construction workers highly ranked motivators such as physiological needs (working
environment, food), esteem needs (autonomy, recognition, feedback from boss, challenging
work, promotions) and security needs (job security, shelter and protection against danger) as
the most important factors that determine their level of job satisfaction. Also these findings
agrees with the findings of the study by (Yirenkyi-Franko and Chileshe, 2012) where
construction professionals highly ranked self-actualization needs (personal development,
career growth) as one of the most important determinants of construction job satisfaction.
Also, these findings agree with the findings of the study by (Kanderee and Chaudhry 2012,
whereby it was found that respondents ranked salary as one of the most important
determinants of job satisfaction.
Table 1: Determinants of construction job satisfaction
Determinants of job satisfaction MIS Rank
Work that allows personal growth 4.83 1
Work that allows development 4.80 2
Employment security 4.70 3
Adequate salary 4.70 3
Feedback from boss on task performance 4.45 4
Opportunity for promotions 4.35 5
Opportunity for challenging work 4.34 6
Recognition from boss for doing a good job 4.33 7
Good working conditions 4.31 8
Having control over own work 4.30 9
Factors that have an influence on absenteeism
Table 6 reveals that the first seven highly ranked factors having influence on absenteeism,
are: too low wage level, lack of incentive; lack of development opportunities, not having
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enough work to do, lack of enforcement of fair policies for all; lack of monitoring of being
absent; lack of motivation to come to work. On the other hand, personal safety concern, poor
relation with co-workers, lack of clear target (deadlines), lack of recognition from boss;
repetitive work, poor working condition, and unchallenging work, were ranked the least.
Regardless of some factors being ranked the least, it must be noted that all these factors
recorded mean item score falling under ―somewhat influential‖. Meaning all the factors
associated with dissatisfaction have influence on absenteeism.
These findings are supported by, Horner and Talhouni (1984), whereby factors such as unsafe
working conditions and lack of job security were identified as having effect on absenteeism.
Similarly, in supporting these findings, (Cheney, 1984) identified organizational factors such
as participation, consideration, feedback , while (Rojas, 2008) identified pay, company size
(which incorporates lack of opportunities for promotions and development), responsibilities,
tasks and worker commitment as factors that have influence on absenteeism in the
construction industry. As such, it can be deduced that the construction job dissatisfaction
have negative influence on absenteeism, because, according to Hadebe (2001), when
employees are dissatisfied with their jobs, they try to find ways of reducing their exposure to
them, and this will be to stay away from those jobs.
Table 6: Job dissatisfaction-related factors that contribute to absenteeism
Job satisfaction-related MIS SD Rank
Too low wage level 2.5 1.18 1
Lack of development opportunities 2.48 1.01 2
Lack of incentive 2.48 1.06 2
Not having enough work to do 2.48 1.09 2
Lack of enforcement of fair policies for all 2.45 0.96 3
Lack of monitoring of being absent (feeling invisible) 2.43 1.03 4
Lack of motivation to come to work 2.4 0.98 5
Personal safety concerns 2.38 1.23 6
Poor relation with co-workers 2.33 0.97 7
Lack of clear target (deadlines) 2.31 1.08 8
Lack of recognition from boss 2.25 1.03 9
Repetitive work 2.23 1.03 10
Poor working conditions 2.18 1.10 11
Unchallenging work 2.13 0.97 12
Factors that have influence on employee turnover
Table 9 indicates that the first seven highly ranked influencers of employee turnover
associated with dissatisfaction in the construction industry are (in the order of ranking): better
benefits package elsewhere ; lack of development opportunities; unchallenging work; poor
relationship with boss ; lack of recognition from boss; and lack of enforcement of fair
policies for all. On the other hand; inadequate resources, lack of advanced technology, poor
relationship with co-workers, safer site elsewhere, and clean job versus dirty job, were ranked
the least. Considering the mean item score of these factors, better benefits package elsewhere
was ranked as ―very influential‖; safer site elsewhere and clean job versus dirty, were ranked
as ―not influential at all‖, while the rest were ranked as ―somewhat influential‖.
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Table 9: Job dissatisfaction-related factors that contribute to employee turnover
Job satisfaction-related MIS SD Rank
Better benefits package elsewhere 3.23 1.06 1
Lack of development opportunities 2.87 1.08 2
Poor relationship with boss 2.64 1.01 3
Unchallenging work 2.64 1.18 3
Lack of recognition from boss 2.59 1.04 4
Lack of enforcement of fair policies for all 2.5 1.13 5
Inadequate resources 2.44 1.10 6
Lack of advanced technology 2.08 1.02 7
Poor relationship with co-workers 2.00 1.00 8
Safer site elsewhere 1.83 0.98 9
Clean job versus dirty job 1.82 1.06 10
In support of these findings, Tnay et al. (2013) have concluded that pay and supervisory
support act as a crucial factor in affecting employee‘s turnover intention; while Sichani
(2010) identified lack of recognition/incentives as other factors that have influence on
employee turnover. Also, the findings are supported by the conclusions of Rojas (2008) that,
company size (which incorporates lack of opportunities for promotions and development),
responsibilities, tasks and worker commitment, better benefit package elsewhere, lack of
adequate tools and equipment, were found to be factors that have a negative influence on
employee turnover.
Conclusion and Further Research
Many construction projects upon completion are not being delivered to the client‘s
satisfaction, due to poor performance throughout the construction process, and among other
factors, job satisfaction has been identified as the factor that influences the performance of
these projects, through experiences of absenteeism and employee turnover. In that regard, this
paper shows the importance of maintaining job satisfaction of employees involved in the
construction industry, in order to improve the performance of construction projects. The
literature on determinants of job satisfaction and the influence of job dissatisfaction on
absenteeism and employee turnover has been reviewed. The findings reveal that the most
important determinants of construction job satisfaction are: work that allows personal growth;
work that allows development; employment security; adequate salary; feedback from boss on
task performance; opportunity for promotions and challenging work. Also, the findings
suggested that aspects associated with job dissatisfaction, such as: salary, incentives,
professional growth, working relationship as well as enforcement of fair, were seen to be the
most influential factors of absenteeism and employee turnover in the South African
construction industry.
It is recommended that within the contracting and construction firms, the employers should as
from time to time, assign employees to different types of projects; be residential, commercial,
civil and so forth. This will help equip employees with different experiences; thereby
allowing professional and personal development as well as continual professional
development. Also, it is crucial for such employees to be involved in a particular project from
the start until its completion. This will allow the employers to have sufficient time to monitor
124
the performance and contribution of a particular employee involved in such project. As a
result, the employer or boss will be able to give feedback on employee‘s performance as well
as, where necessary, reward that particular employee either by provision of promotion
(associated with salary increase), incentive bonus or an award as way of appreciation. Also,
the employers should improve working environment to be conducive for employees to
perform tasks. This can be achieved by modifying and improving working environment
through provision of adequate lighting, comfortable temperatures and ventilation, as well as
access to eating area.
The majority of the respondents were younger as well as female members of construction
professional team. Therefore, this study carries a greater value in contributing to the existing
literature of job satisfaction based on individuals of rather different characteristics as
mentioned above. Significantly, the construction industry needs to retain individuals of such
characteristics to assist in contributing positively in improving the performance of the
industry as a whole. Probably, these younger respondents may become the future seniors and
leaders within the industry; therefore, it is crucial to invest in them, in order to retain and
create potential candidates ideal for being leaders and seniors that the construction industry
needs to have in future. By investment, it implies that, with the guidance of these present
findings of this study, the management and employers can manage to address and maintain
the issue of job satisfaction of these aforementioned individuals.
References Bernold, L.E. & AbouRizk, S.M. (2010). Managing Performance in Construction. New
Jersey: John Wiley and Sons, Inc.
Bowen, P. & Cattell, K. (2008). Job satisfaction of South African Quantity Surveyors.
Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 15(3), pp. 260 – 269.
Burke, R. (2010). Project Management Techniques: Project Leadership. Cape Town: Burke
Publishing.
Cheney, P.H. (1984). Effects of Individual Characteristics, Organizational Factors and
Task Characteristics on Computer Programmer Productivity and Job
Satisfaction. PhD. University of Minnesota.
CIDB (2013). The CIDB Construction Industry Indicators: Summary Results. Pretoria:
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Deeprose, D. (2003). Smart Things to Know about Motivation. UK: Capstone Publishing
Limited.
Hadebe, (2001). The Relationship between Motivation and Job Satisfaction of Employees at
Vista Information Services. Degree of Masters in Administration. University of
Johannesburg.
Hodson, R. & Sullivan, T.A. (1990). The Social Organization of Work: Seeking Job
Satisfaction. United State of America: Wadsworth
Horner, R.M.W. & Talhouni, B.T. (1984). Effects of Accelerated Working, Delays and
Disruption on Labour Productivity: Absenteeism. UK. Publisher Unknown.
Kanderee, K. & Chaudhry, A.G. (2012). Leadership – Style, Satisfaction and
Commitment: An Exploration in the United Arab Emirates Construction Sector,
Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 19(1), pp. 61 - 85.
Lavender, S. (1996). Management for the Construction Industry: Individual Motivation.
Addison Wesley Longman. Limited. England.
Matutuane, L.P. (2009). A Study of Employee Satisfaction in Two Manufacturing Facilities
of General Motors South Africa. MBA. Rhode University.
125
Neuman, W.L. (2000). Social Research Methods: Qualitative and Quantitative
Approaches. New York: Pearson.
Onukwube, H.N. (2012). ‗Correlates of Job Satisfaction amongst Quantity Surveyors in
Consulting Firms in Lagos‘, Nigeria, Australian Journal of construction Economics
and Building, 12(2), pp. 43-54.
Robbins, S. (2003). Organizational Behaviour: Values, Attitudes, and Job Satisfaction
& Basic Motivation Concepts. New York: Pearson.
Rojas, E.M. (2008). Construction Productivity: Absenteeism and Turnover. United
States of America: ELECTRI International.
Roos, W. (2005). The Relationship between Employee Motivation, Job Satisfaction and
Corporate culture. MSc. University of South Africa.
Sichani, M.S. (2010). Understanding Absenteeism in Construction.: A Pilot Study on
Industrial Construction Alberta. MSc. University of Alberta.
Thwala, W.D., Monese, L. & Nthabiseng, L.N. (2012). ‗Motivators of Construction
Workers in the South African Construction Sites: A Case Study‘, Journal of
Economics and Behavioral Studies, 4(11), pp. 625-643.
Tnay, E. Othman, A.E. Siong, H.C & Lim, S.L.O. (2013). ‗The Influences of Job
Satisfaction and Organisational Commitment on Turnover Intention‘.
Proceedings of Social and Behavioural Sciences, 6 November 2013, Universiti
Malaysia Sarawak, pp. 201-208.
Tyilana, E.X. (2005). Impact of Motivation On Job Satisfaction Amongst employees Of A
National Broadcaster. MCom. University of Johannesburg.
Yirenkyi-Fianko, A.B. & Chilese, N. (2012). ‗Job Satisfaction of Professionals within
Ghanaian Construction Industry‘, In: Smith, S.D (Ed). Proceedings Of The 28th
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Researchers in Construction Management, pp.589-599.
126
An assessment of the barriers in adoption and
implementation strategies of building information
modelling (BIM) in South African construction TG Kekana, CO Aigbavboa and WD Thwala
Department of Construction Management & Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
BIM is a concept that has been defined as a technology that digitally constructs an accurate
virtual model of a building. BIM can be defined as an IT enabled approach that involves the
application and maintenance of a fundamental digital representation of a building and all its
information throughout the different stages of the project. The model of the building, which
will be in 3D, will depict the exact dimensions of the building. The study assesses the barriers
to the adoption and implementation of BIM within the South African construction industry,
and suggests ways of overcoming the identified barriers to the full adoption and
implementation of BIM in the South African construction industry. The data used in this
paper was derived from primary and secondary sources. The primary data being
questionnaires, was designed based on the related literature that was reviewed. The
questionnaire was distributed to construction professionals such as Construction Project
Managers, Architects, Quantity Surveyors, Construction Managers, Facility Managers, or
academics who have previously done research on BIM in the South African construction
industry. The questionnaires were analysed using descriptive statistical procedures. The
findings revealed that a lack of skills, education, and knowledge on BIM are the biggest
barriers to the full implementation of BIM in South Africa. Furthermore, the results also
show that educational and skill development initiatives are widely considered to being the
answer to the existing barriers to BIM adoption. As well as, establishing feasible ways of
moving away from the common practice into using BIM on all construction projects.
Keywords:
Building Information Modelling, Construction, South Africa
Introduction
BIM produces a model known as the building information model, which according to Ahazar
(2011) and Bryde et al. (2012) can be used throughout all the project stages to, and including
the operation and maintenance of the facility. According to Riddel (n.d.), BIM represents the
design of the building as objects that carry their geometry and full attributes. This is achieved
because the model will depict how the building will look once all the components have been
inserted or built into the data. According to Ashraf and Esquire (2008), some of the other
possible uses for BIM in construction industry include it being used solely for design
purposes, for coordination and clash detection, estimating material prices, construction
simulation, and the creation of shop drawing and for review of submittals, amongst others.
Although BIM is perceived to being able to eradicate almost all the inadequacies that arise in
the process of construction, it is not the solution to all the problems in construction
127
(Davidson, 2009). Eastman et al. (2008) further states that BIM is a modelling technology,
which has an associated set of process that produce, communicate and analyse building
models. The authors further identify the characteristics of these models by the building
components that are digitally represented, the different components of the data, and the data,
which produces the different views of the model. The communicated views are 3D
representations which is something that cannot be achieved without the usage of BIM.
However, even with the documented benefits of using BIM, it has certain barriers that make
potential users reluctant to its full adoption and implementation in the construction industry.
Davidson (2009) attributes some of these barriers to issues such as workflow disruption, staff
and training, legal and contractual issues and interoperability. Some of these attributions are
echoed by Ku and Taiebat (2011) and Takim et al. (2013). These barriers are universal
because of the professionals‘ reluctance to move away from their usual methods of managing
and carrying out projects. Furthermore, Cidik et al. (2014), with aid from Bank et al. (2010)
identify other abilities of the BIM technology, including those before mentioned, to help
professionals in carrying such performance assessments at earlier design stages of the
projects as a benefit of using BIM. Although BIM is proving to be the answer to a lot of
construction related problems, it has also been widely noted by authors such as Brewer et al.
(2012) and Ashcraft and Esquire (2008) that BIM doesn‘t come without its challenges. From
the literature that was reviewed, the researcher found that there were two major issues which
were turning out to being barriers to the adoption and implementation of BIM in construction
industries across the world. These barriers could be divided into two groups, namely
contractual issues as explained by Ashcraft and Esquire (2008), and personnel issues as
explained by Ku and Taiebat (2011).
Ashraf and Esquire (2008) have identified certain legal issues that that stand in the way of the
full adoption and implementation of BIM. These issues provide headaches with regards to
who should be taking responsibility for which parts of the model, as well as the distribution
of risk amongst all the professionals within the project team. Therefore, in this research
study, the researcher has looked at what BIM is, the critical barriers to its adoptions, and how
these barriers can be successfully overcome in the South African construction industry.
Barriers to the implementation of BIM
Ashraf and Esquire (2008) have done a lot of research on the barriers to the full adoption and
implementation of BIM in construction. And they have listed the following as the some of the
existing barriers:
Standard of care of using BIM
This looks at the inability of the professionals to identify and rectify any physical conflicts
(clash detection) that may occur during the project life using BIM. The resulting
consequences of such ‗negligence‘ may include delays and cost overruns due to reworks that
will be required once clashes are detected.
Design delegation and professional responsibility
This clause looks to define and identify the roles and responsibilities of the parties involved
in the project. The process between design, construct and ownership of the building puts
normally puts the architect and/or engineer as the person with the most responsibility for the
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model. Alternatively, a new position such as a BIM-modeller can be created (Brewer et al.,
2012) to carry out the same responsibilities.
Intellectual property
This refers to the challenges that will arise in terms of what is the design and who owns it
amongst others. Such problems are only resolved by contractual agreements at the
commencement of the design process. Failure to do so may lead to violations because the
model holds the parts of the design.
Insurability
This relates to who has rights in the model of the project at hand. Hence the rights to the
models have to be insured. Insurance brokers involved in the construction industries are yet
to allow stable and assured policies with regards to these issues.
Data translation
This relates to the sharing/feeding and/or transferring of information into the model. The
appropriate interoperability of the information is a fundamental aspect of BIM. The ability for
different tools in the model to adequately send and receive information is of utmost
importance. The ethics of the professionals plays a role in ensuring the smooth-running of
this part of the model.
Research Methodology
The data used for this paper was derived from both primary and secondary sources. The
primary data was obtained through a structured close-ended questionnaire, and the secondary
data was obtained from the relevant literature that was reviewed by the researcher. A total
number of 65 structured questionnaires were sent to individuals in the municipalities of
Tshwane, City of Johannesburg, and Ekhuruleni (all in Gauteng, South Africa) who are
practicing as Quantity Surveyors, Construction Managers, Architects, Facility Managers,
Project Managers, or Academics. The questionnaire was designed based on the information
that was gathered during the literature review. A 5-point likert type scale was used for the
questionnaires. This scale measured the extent to which the respondents agreed or disagreed
with the factors presented to them. A random sampling method was adopted for the purposes
of this research. This method was preferred due to the fact that it gave all the targeted
respondents an equal chance and opportunity of being selected.
From all the questionnaires that were sent out; 50 usable questionnaires were returned. This
meant that the response rate was at 77%. The data were then analyzed using the Statistical
Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS); with the frequencies and mean item scores (MIS),
and the standard deviations (SD) of the rated factors being considered. This research was
conducted between the months of May and September 2014; with the data collection being
carried out between June and August 2014.
The Likert scales were transformed to an MIS for each of the research objectives as
applicable. The indices were then further used to determine the rank of each item according
the results obtained from the respondents. These rankings made it possible to cross compare
the importance of each item to the respondents. The MIS was based on previous studies as
conducted by Mukuka et al. (2013) where the ‗MIS‘ rating was used. This method was also
129
used for this study to analyse the data collected through the distributed questionnaire. The
MIS was calculated from the total of all weighted responses and then it was related to the
total responses on a particular option/item on the questionnaire. This was based on the
principle that respondents‘ scores on all the selected options, considered together, are indices
of the relative importance of each of the options. The index of MIS of a particular factor is
the sum of the scores that were received from the respondents (on the particular Likert scale
of that question) as just a proportion the overall score that all respondents could give to that
factor (one to five), which, for the two main questions for this study, mean ―Not a barrier
(NB)-Extreme barrier (EB)‖ and ―Strongly Disagree (SD)-Strongly Agree (SA)‖. The relative
index for each item was calculated for each item as follows, after Aigbavboa et al. (2013).
Following the mathematical computations, the criteria are then ranked in descending order of
their relative importance index (from the highest to the lowest). The next section of the article
presents the findings of the survey and some discussions.
Findings and Discussion
Findings from the questionnaire survey that was sent out reveal that of the 50 questionnaires
that were returned, 42% of the respondents had obtained a Bachelor‘s Degree, 38% had a
Diploma, 14% had a Master‘s Degree, and only 6% had a Matric certificate as their highest
educational qualification. Furthermore, the data results also reveal that of the 50 respondents,
32% were working as Quantity Surveyors, 32% were Architects, 18% were Construction
Managers, 12% were Project Managers, 4% were Construction Project Managers, and only
2% were working as Facility Managers. The results go on to show the years of experience
that the respondents had. 52% of them had between 1 and 5 years, 30% had between 6 and 7
years, 12% had between 11 and 15 years, 4% had between 16 and 20 years, and only 2% had
above 20 years of experience.
Awareness and Experience of BIM
The questionnaire results reveal that the majority (66%) of the respondents had some sort of
experience with BIM and its tools. 34% of the respondents had no experience with BIM, 18%
had 1 year experience, 12% had 2 years of experience, another 12% had 3 years of
experience, a further 8% had 4 years‘ experience, 6% had 5 years, and 10% had more than 5
years of experience with BIM. Of those who had no experience as yet with BIM, 40.6% said
they were interested in BIM, 31.3% were highly interested, and a further 21.9% were neutral
in terms of interest. Only 6.2% said they have low-to-no interest in BIM. The respondents
were also asked how often BIM is used in their organisations, who uses it, and which BIM
tools were used in their organisations. Figure 1 shows how often BIM is used in these
organisations.
Figure 1: Frequency of BIM usage in organisations
130
Figure 2 shows how the respondents responded when asked who, in their organisations, is
permitted to use BIM for the projects which they work on.
Figure 2: Those permitted to use BIM for projects in organisations
Figure 3 shows which BIM tools are used in these organisations.
Figure 3: BIM tools used in organisations
Barriers to the adoption of BIM
In addition, when the respondents were asked what they thought were the barriers to the
adoption of BIM in the South African construction industry, they identified and ranked a lack
of BIM skills development as the main barrier (MIS=3.56). The results, shown in Table 1,
also show that lack of training on BIM (MIS=3.53), lack of education on BIM (MIS=3.52),
the unavailability of qualified personnel (MIS=3.42), and the lack of expertise on BIM
(MIS=3.32) are amongst the major barriers to the full adoption and implementation of BIM in
the South African construction industry. This is in full agreement with what Ku and Taiebat
(2011) said about personnel problems being the biggest hindrances and barriers to the full
adoption of BIM in organisations. The results show that problems arising from contractual
issues (MIS=2.74), licensing procedures (MIS=2.68), and insurance issues (MIS=2.65) are
the lowest ranked in relation to them being factors in the full adoption and implementation of
BIM in the South African construction industry. The lower ranked factors are also in
agreement with Ashcraft and Esquire (2008) who said contractual issues were also barriers in
the adoption of BIM globally. However, the results contradict their conclusion that the
contractual issues are the main barriers.
Ways of overcoming the barriers to BIM adoption
131
In addition, when the respondents were asked to rate their agreement with the researcher as to
which ways would work best in eradicating these barriers, education on BIM came out on
top. The results, also shown in Table 2, show that the respondents believe that BIM should be
integrated into education courses across all built environment disciplines (MIS=4.52), that
BIM skills development programmes should be conducted in the construction industry
(MIS=4.32), and that the availability of BIM technology be increased (MIS=4.28). The
results have also shown that the respondents consider the improving of BIM software
standardization (MIS=3.94), the developing of forms of contracts for the insurance of BIM
(MIS=3.84), and having the government enforce the usage of BIM as a primary requirement
in the built environment sector (MIS=3.72) as the lowest ranked. However, it must be noted
that although these three are at the bottom of the list, the MIS‘s are not too far from those at
the top. This explains that any, if not all, these suggested ways to overcoming the identified
barriers could have a major impact if they were taken forward and enforced.
Table 1: Barriers to the adoption of BIM in the South African construction industry
Barriers to adoption of BIM MIS SD Rank
Lack of BIM skills development 3.56 0.675 1
Lack of training on BIM 3.53 0.892 2
Lack of education on BIM 3.52 0.909 3
Unavailability of qualified personnel 3.42 0.785 4
Lack of expertise on BIM tools 3.32 0.768 5
Lack of information on BIM 3.20 0.948 6
Lack of resources needed for BIM 3.14 0.948 7
Lack of support for BIM from the industry 3.04 0.989 8
Unwillingness to change the traditional way of practice 3.00 0.904 9
Current contractual systems which do not adequately address
issues of control of entry of data to BIM model 2.96 0.781 10
Inadequacies in the standardization of BIM processes 2.94 0.767 11
Hesitation to learn new technology 2.92 0.932 12
Culture shock (Contrary to common practice) 2.92 1.057 12
The common practice of design and drafting separately 2.86 0.756 13
Current contractual systems which do not adequately address
issues regarding model ownership 2.86 0.833 13
Lack of software inter-operability 2.86 0.857 13
Lack of software standardization 2.84 0.817 14
Current contractual systems which do not adequately address
issues regarding the liability for errors 2.84 0.866 14
Lack of support for BIM from clients 2.80 1.161 15
Problems arising from contractual issues 2.74 0.922 16
Current contractual systems which do not adequately address
issues regarding omissions 2.74 0.965 16
Problems arising from copyright procedures 2.74 0.986 16
Problems arising from licensing procedures 2.68 0.935 17
Problems arising from insurance issues 2.65 0.830 18
(MIS=Mean Item Score, SD=Standard Deviation, R=Rank)
132
Conclusion and Further Research
The study has assessed the critical barriers to the adoption and implementation strategies of
BIM in the South African construction industry. The findings of the study suggest that the
barriers to the adoption in South Africa are similar to those of the first world countries. The
findings reveal that BIM and its tools are used in South Africa; however it has not been
exposed to enough people for it to be considered on construction projects in the local
industry, with only 38% of the organisations using BIM on often and/or all their projects. The
findings further reveal that a lack of skills, education, and knowledge on BIM are the biggest
barriers to the full implementation of BIM in the South African construction industry, in
addition to that, the results also show that educational and skill development initiatives are
widely considered to be the answer to the existing barriers to BIM adoption. Also, increasing
the availability of BIM technology to all organisations, and establishing feasible ways of
moving away from the common practice (way of doing business) into using BIM on all
construction projects have been ranked highly as possible ways of overcoming the identified
barriers to the full implementation and adoption of BIM in the local South African
construction industry. Therefore, the study‘s objectives of assessing the critical barriers to the
adoption of BIM in the South African construction industry, and to suggest feasible ways of
overcoming the berries have been met.
Table 2: Ways of overcoming barriers to BIM adoption in South African construction
Statements MIS SD Rank
Integrate BIM into education courses across all built environment disciplines 4.52 0.707 1
Conduct BIM skills development programmes in the construction industry 4.32 0.844 2
Establish feasible ways of moving from common practice into BIM 4.28 0.784 3
Increase the availability of BIM technology 4.28 0.927 3
Conduct workshops on BIM benefits to create awareness among all the stakeholders 4.24 0.797 4
Undertake pilot projects to validate and demonstrate the BIM outcomes. 4.10 0.839 5
Improve interoperability of the BIM software with existing applications 4.08 0.922 6
Communicate lessons learned from the pilot projects to all stakeholders 4.08 0.944 6
Develop forms of contracts for stakeholders for the use of BIM technology 4.04 0.947 7
Develop forms of contracts for stakeholders for intellectual property of BIM 4.02 0.958 8
Improve on BIM software standardization. 3.94 0.843 9
Develop forms of contracts for stakeholders for warranty requirements of BIM 3.94 0.956 9
Educate government departments on ‗model-based‘ deliverables and its benefits 3.94 1.038 9
Develop forms of contracts for the insurance of BIM 3.84 0.934 10
Have government enforce the usage of BIM as a primary requirement in the built
environment sector 3.72 1.230 11
References Azhar, S. (2011) ‗Building Information Modelling (BIM): Trends, benefits, risks, and
challenges for AEC industry‘. Leadership and Management in Engineering. 241-252.
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Azhar, S., Carlton, W., Olsen, D. & Ahmad, I. (2010) ‗Building information modelling for
sustainable design and LEED rating analysis‘. Automation in Construction. 20(2), 217-
224.
Ashraf, H.W. (2008) ‗Implementing BIM: A report from the field on the issues and
strategies‘. Proceedings of the 47th annual meeting of invited attorneys. June 2008.
Seattle, WA. 53-84.
Bank, L.C., McCarthy, M., Thompson, B.P., & Menassa, C.C. (2010) ‗Integrating BIM with
system dynamics as a decision making framework for sustainable building design and
operation‘. Proceeding of the First International Conference for Sustainable
Urbanization (ICSU). December 2010. Hong Kong, China.
Bryde, D., Broquetas, M. & Volm, J.M. (2012) ‗The project benefits of building information
modelling (BIM)‘. International Journal of Project Management, 31, 971-980.
Cidik, M.S., Boyd, D. & Thurairajah, N. (2014) ‗BIM and conceptual design sustainability
analysis: An information categorisation framework‘. Proceedings of the 50th ASC Annual
International Conference. March 2014. Washington, DC.
Davidson, A.R. (2009) ‗A study of the development and impact of building information
modelling software in the construction industry‘.
Ding, G.K.C. (2008) ‗Sustainable construction-The role of assessment tools‘. Journal of
Environment Management. 86, 451-464.
Eastman, C.M., Teicholz, P., Sachs, R. & Liston, K. (2008) BIM handbook: A guide to
building information modelling for owners, managers, designers, engineers, and
contractors. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley Publishing.
Gu, N. & London, K. (2010) ‗Understanding and facilitating BIM adoption in the AEC
industry‘. Automation in Construction. 19, 988-999.
Hobbs, C. (2008) ‗BIM by the back door‘. The Structural Engineer, 86(13), 18.
Ku, K. & Taiebat, M. (2011) ‗BIM experiences and expectation: The contractors‘
perspective‘. International Journal of Construction Education and Research, 7(3), 175-
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Riddell, C. (n.d) ‗Building information modelling. Who is liable?‘
Schlueter, A. & Thessling, F. (2009) ‗Building information model based energy/exergy
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Takim, R., Harris, M. & Nawawi, A.H. (2013) ‗Building information modelling (BIM): A
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134
Advantages of Including Core Real Estate Topics in
Bachelor of Construction Management and Quantity
Surveying Curricula in South Africa Samuel H.P. Chikafalimani
1, Ganesan Reddy
2 and Krishna Ramphal
2
1Industrial Development Corporation of South Africa, Johannesburg, South Africa
[email protected] 2Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying
Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa
Abstract:
Core real estate topics include: property valuation, property management, property finance,
property investment, property law, property marketing, and property development. This paper
describes the advantages gained by students and industry when core real estate topics are
covered in Bachelor of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying (BCMQS)
curricula. To determine the advantages, fifteen quantity surveying practitioners who attended
South African Council for Quantity Surveying Profession (SACQSP) 2014 annual conference
in Pretoria, South Africa were surveyed. In addition to learning quantity surveying and
construction management skills, results of the survey reveal that the advantages of including
core real estate topics in BCMQS curricula include exposing students to property specific
skills like: principles of property market value determination, leasing / property management
/ facilities management, property development process, time value of money, life cycle
costing, and property financing and investment options. The intention of the study is to
highlight how such unique curricula broaden opportunities for students and benefits the
industry by engaging multi-skilled graduates.
Keywords:
Construction Management, Curricula, Education, Real Estate, Quantity Surveying
Introduction
Fifteen quantity surveying practitioners who attended the South African Council for the
Quantity Surveying Profession (SACQSP) annual conference from 21 to 23 September 2014
in Pretoria, South Africa were surveyed to determine the advantages of including core real
estate topics in Bachelor of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying (BCMQS)
curricula. While it is appreciated that input was obtained from prominent players in the
construction and property industry in order to include core real estate topics in some of
BCMQS curricula in South Africa, no study has specifically been done to confirm the reasons
why core real estate topics are covered in the curricula. Therefore, this study aims at
scientifically highlighting the advantages of adding core real estate topics in BCMQS
curricula based on views obtained from practicing quantity surveying professionals in South
Africa. In the process the study intends to link and tie the curriculum with industry
requirements. Justification for the study is based on the fact that practitioners in the industry
have an important role to play in the processes of curriculum assessment, improvement and
development (Worzala, 2003; Butler, Guntermann & Wolverton, 1998). Table 1 contains
selected BCMQS programmes offered in South Africa.
135
Literature Review
The following relevant areas are reviewed in order to set out the theoretical framework
underpinning the study:
Relationship between real estate and other built environment professions
Black and Rabianski (2003) observe that in the UK and other British Commonwealth
countries the relationship between real estate and other built environment programmes is very
strong. As a consequence real estate programmes at universities in most of these countries are
housed together with other built environment programmes where both physical and financial
aspects of real estate are taught (Roulac, 2002). According to the Council for the Built
Environment (CBE) in South Africa, built environment professions include: quantity
surveying, construction management, town planning, architecture, civil engineering and
property valuation. These professions are related and complement each other in construction
and property development processes (Murphy, 1999).
Real estate, quantity surveying and construction management curricula
In order to understand fully the advantages of including core real estate topics in BCMQS
curricula, it is necessary to highlight the cornerstones of real estate, quantity surveying and
construction management curricula. Black, Carn, Diaz and Rabianski (1996) emphasise that a
well-rounded curriculum must reflect the interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary nature of the
construction and property industry. Therefore, the aim of a curriculum in the built
environment should be to provide effective decision makers, practitioners and managers who
are armed with concepts, techniques and skills required to solve problems in the construction
and property industry of today and tomorrow.
Table 1: Selected BCMQS curricula offered in South Africa
University Names of degree programmes offered
Durban University of Technology
(DUT), Durban
Bachelor of Technology (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Technology (Construction Management)
University of KwaZulu-Natal
(UKZN), Durban
Bachelor of Science (Property Development)
University of Cape Town (UCT),
Cape Town
Bachelor of Science (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Science (Construction Management)
Cape Peninsula University of
Technology (CPUT), Cape Town
Bachelor of Technology (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Technology (Construction Management)
Central University of Technology
(CUT), Bloemfontein
Bachelor of Technology (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Technology (Construction Management
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan
University (NMMU), Port Elizabeth
Bachelor of Science (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Science (Construction Management
Bachelor of Technology (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Technology (Construction Management
University of Witwatersrand (UW),
Johannesburg
Bachelor of Science (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Science (Construction Management)
University of Pretoria (UP), Pretoria Bachelor of Science (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Science (Construction Management)
Tshwane University of Technology
(TUT), Pretoria
Bachelor of Technology (Quantity Surveying)
Bachelor of Technology (Construction Management)
Sources: Construction Management and Quantity Surveying Study Guides: DUT, UKZN, UCT, CPUT,
NMMU, UW, UP and TUT
136
Based on these industry requirements, Black et al. (1996) and Schulte (2003, 2007) note that
a comprehensive real estate curriculum should be composed and be built around four
cornerstones of the property industry which are: property valuation, property management,
property finance, and property development. With regard to quantity surveying curriculum,
the SACQSP has offered a curriculum guideline which indicates that a quantity surveying
curriculum should cover the following broad topics: feasibility studies; construction law;
construction economics; construction technology; construction management; quantifying and
documentation; valuation of construction work; risk, value management and cost control; and
procurement. These core topics are also described by the SACQSP as critical curriculum
outcomes. Finally, the course content of construction management curriculum is expected to
include the following topics: project management planning, cost management, quality
management, contract administration, and safety management.
Importance of industry in built environment education
Chikafalimani and Reddy (2014) conducted a study on integration of the industry in real
estate education in Africa. It was noted that input from industry practitioners and employers
assisted the universities offering real estate education in Africa in the processes of curriculum
assessment and improvement. Hence, comments from the industry on the curriculum
provided an opportunity for educators to determine how course offerings are being
appreciated by students, industry practitioners and employers. Manning (2002), Callanan and
McCarthy (2003), Galuppo and Worzala (2004), Chambers, Holm and Worzala (2009),
Chikafalimani and Cloete (2010), and Chikafalimani (2013) add that such a role fits industry
practitioners and employers well since they recruit the students after graduation. From that
perspective they are fully aware of weaknesses and strengths of graduates when they join the
workplace and based on this they are in the right position to advise educators how the
curriculum is supporting new hires to meet industry requirements as well as address new
challenges that are emerging in construction and property business. This study attempts to
seek input on the curriculum from industry practitioners by asking them to mention
advantages gained by students and industry when core real estate topics are included in
BCMQS curricula.
Changing construction and property business
Roulac (2002) noted that today the construction and property industry is subjected to
extraordinary forces that redefine its attributes and introduce new expectations for those with
construction and property involvements. Some of the prominent factors (forces) which have
caused change in construction and property business include: urban form changes and
problems; globalisation; information technology advances; environmental concerns; and
political, legal, social and economic factors (Roulac, 2002; Ghyoot, 2002). Introduction of
these factors has necessitated the client in the construction and property industry to change in
order to survive. New challenges that have specifically affected the client are: decline in
house market prices, a sub-prime mortgage crisis, high oil prices, rising inflation, high food
prices, a substantial credit crisis leading to the bankruptcy of several large and well
established investment banks, increased unemployment, and global recession (Chikafalimani,
2010). With increasing financial, economic and social problems, the budgets of construction
and property clients globally have become tighter, and their construction and property needs
have all over a sudden changed mainly because of unaffordability reasons. Due to new
challenges the client and industry are experiencing, the construction and property
professional has equally been forced to adapt his services package and skills in order to
survive (Roulac, 2002). As a consequence, Susilawati and Blake (2009) observe that in
137
Australia compositions of construction and property professional services firms have been
forced to move away from a discipline specific ‗silo‘ structure to a more multidisciplinary
environment to survive. They add that the benefits of multidisciplinary elements have been
seen in the industry by providing synergies across many of the related disciplines. In response
to industry changes and requirements, Queensland University of Technology in Australia has
sought to broaden the knowledge base of quantity surveying, construction and property
students and achieve a greater level of synergy between related and built environment
professions (Susilawati & Blake, 2009). This study similarly examines the advantages of
including core real estate topics in BCMQS curricula in South Africa to highlight how such
unique curricula broaden opportunities for students and benefits the industry by engaging
multi-skilled graduates who are able to competently deal with quantity surveying /
construction and property specific tasks.
Research Methodology
Two research approaches were used to collect data for the study. Firstly, a literature survey
was conducted to identify BCMQS curricula offered in South Africa which include core real
estate topics and whose course contents were easily accessible. Table 1 contains 19 selected
BCMQS curricula found in the study which include core real estate topics. Secondly, a
survey of fifteen quantity surveying practitioners who attended the SACQSP annual
conference from 21 to 23 September 2014 was undertaken to determine the advantages to
students and industry of including core real estate topics in BCMQS curricula in South
Africa. Responses from the practitioners were obtained through direct interviews which were
held with each quantity surveying practitioner separately. In the interviews the practitioners
were asked to mention advantages they have noted to students and industry when core real
state topics are included in BCMQS curricula.
Results, Analysis and Discussion
Results of the study carried out to determine advantages of including core real estate topics in
BCMQS curricula in South Africa are analysed and discussed under two subheadings: survey
of selected BCMQS curricula, and survey of quantity surveying practitioners.
Survey of selected BCMQS curricula
Table 1 contains selected BCMQS curricula identified in the curriculum survey in South
Africa which have core real estate topics in their course offerings. In total 19 selected
BCMQS curricula were found in the survey and are offered by the following universities:
Durban University of Technology, University of KwaZulu Natal, University of Cape Town,
Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Central University of Technology, Nelson
Mandela Metropolitan University, University of Witwatersrand, and Tshwane University of
Technology. Results of curricula analysis given in Table 2 show that core real estate topics
offered by these universities are: Market Valuation (Property Valuation); Maintenance
Management (Property Management / Facilities Management); Property Studies (Property
Valuation, Property Management, Property Finance, Property Investment, Property Law,
Property Marketing, and Property Development); Property Law; and Property Financial
Mathematics (Time Value of Money). This finding clearly demonstrates that apart from
offering quantity surveying and construction management subjects, these universities have
purposely included real estate topics in curricula expected to produce quantity surveying and
construction management professionals. By including these topics in the curricula, the
138
universities have indicated that it is relevant for quantity surveying and construction
management students to be exposed to some important real estate topics in order for them to
be competent built environment professionals as they join the workplace in construction and
property industry. Further, this finding shows that the universities are aware that apart from
offering quantity surveying and construction management services, after graduation, these
students may also be frequently asked by clients in the industry to also offer property specific
services. Since the students were exposed to real estate topics while at the university they will
also be able to give professional advice to clients on property specific needs as they offer
quantity surveying and construction management services. Consequently, it is noted that
students graduating from such unique BCMQS curricula have an advantage since they are
multi-skilled and will be able to support clients in the industry with quantity surveying /
construction and property specific needs.
Survey of quantity surveying practitioners
Results of the survey of quantity surveying practitioners on advantages of including core real
estate topics in BCMQS curricula in South Africa are contained in Table 3. The phrasing of
the responses in Table 3 is exactly the same as given by the practitioners. In some cases
where there were similarities between the responses, they were grouped together. In total 8
responses were given by the respondents. The responses from the survey of practicing
quantity surveyors test the selected BCMQS curricula if they are meeting student and
industry requirements as intended. As expected from an open-ended question, a variety of
responses were submitted. Most of the responses given are constructive and significantly
highlight the advantages gained by students and industry from such unique BCMQS curricula
which include core real estate topics.
Table 2: Core Real Estate Topics offered in Selected BCMQS curricula offered in South Africa
University Core real estate topics offered
Durban University of Technology
(DUT), Durban
Market Valuation (Property Valuation),
Maintenance Management (Property Management /
Facilities Management)
University of KwaZulu-Natal
(UKZN), Durban
Property Studies (Property Valuation, Management,
Finance, Investment, Law, Marketing, Development
University of Cape Town (UCT),
Cape Town
Property Studies (Property Valuation, Management,
Finance, Investment, Law, Marketing, Development
Cape Peninsula University of
Technology (CPUT), Cape Town
Market Valuation (Property Valuation),
Maintenance Management (Property Management /
Facilities Management)
Central University of Technology
(CUT), Bloemfontein
Market Valuation (Property Valuation),
Maintenance Management (Property Management /
Facilities Management)
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan
University (NMMU), Port Elizabeth
Market Valuation (Property Valuation),
Maintenance Management (Property Management /
Facilities Management)
University of Witwatersrand (UW),
Johannesburg
Property Studies (Property Valuation, Management,
Economics & Finance, Investment, Law, Marketing,
Development
University of Pretoria (UP), Pretoria Introduction to Property Law,
Property Financial Mathematics (Time Value of Money)
Tshwane University of Technology
(TUT), Pretoria
Market Valuation (Property Valuation),
Maintenance Management (Property Management /
Facilities Management)
Sources: Construction Management and Quantity Surveying Study Guides: DUT, UKZN, UCT, CPUT,
NMMU, UW, UP and TUT (2014)
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Responses given by practicing quantity surveyors in Table 3 emphasise the point that when
core real estate topics are included in BCMQS curricula, quantity surveying and construction
management students have the advantage of also being taught property specific skills in
addition to quantity surveying and construction management subjects. Following from this,
results in Table 3 shows that all respondents agree that by including core real estate topics in
the curricula, BCMQS students have the opportunity to learn ‗principles of property market
value determination‘ and ‗leasing / property management / facilities management‘ skills. 93%
of the respondents also express the point that by including core real estate topics students are
exposed to the ‗property development process‘ while 87% of the practicing quantity
surveyors mention that students are made aware of ‗time value of money‘, ‗life cycle
costing‘, and ‗property financing and investment options‘. In Table 3, it is also noted that
80% of the respondents are confident that by including core real estate topics in BCMQS
curricula students will be able to extend business consultancy opportunities for themselves
and their employers as well as increase their employment opportunities when they join the
construction and property industry since they are multi-skilled. Based on all of this, the
impression given by the respondents is that BCMQS curricula which include core real estate
topics in their offerings are supporting the production of competent multi-skilled built
environment professionals who will effectively handle both quantity surveying / construction
and property specific tasks in the industry.
Table 3: Practicing quantity surveyors responses on advantages of including core real estate topics
Response Frequency
Percentage
(%)
Principles of property market value determination 15 100
Leasing / property management / facilities management 15 100
Property development process 14 93
Time value of money 13 87
Life cycle costing 13 87
Property financing and investment options 13 87
Extend business consultancy opportunities / increase client services /
offer complete client services
12 80
Increase employment opportunities 12 80
Conclusions and Further Research
The study is brief and focused and intends to link course content of BCMQS curricula which
contain core real estate topics with construction and property industry requirements. Based on
findings of the study, it is noted from practicing quantity surveyors that the main advantage
of such unique curricula is that they offer an opportunity to quantity surveying and
construction students to be taught property specific skills like: principles of property market
value determination, leasing / property management / facilities management, property
development process, time value of money, life cycle costing, and property financing and
investment options. This broadens their knowledge and skills base. Furthermore, the
responses given by the practicing quantity surveyors are positive and constructive and
support the decisions taken by the universities to incorporate core real estate topics in the
curricula. It is also observed from findings of the study that the construction and property
industry benefits from such unique curricula by being given the opportunity to engage and
employ competent multi-skilled built environment professionals who are able to tackle
effectively both quantity surveying / construction and property specific tasks. This is
particularly important today when multi-skilled built environment professionals are preferred
by the industry to help solve holistically a wide range of new challenges that are emerging in
construction and property transactions and involvements globally. The study also notes that
140
such unique curricula widen employment and business opportunities for students as they join
the industry. To conclude, the study encourages other universities offering BCMQS curricula
in South Africa and elsewhere to consider incorporating core real estate topics in their course
offerings in order to broaden skills base and other opportunities for students as well as meet
construction and property industry requirements by producing multi-skilled graduates who
are quite useful in the industry today.
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Proper implementation of development programmes as a
key driver for creating construction industry interest
among youth in Western Cape, South Africa MD Kazadi
1and L Wentzel
2
1Department of Economic Management Science,
University of the Western Cape, South Africa
[email protected] 2Department of Construction Management,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa
Abstract:
The South African construction industry (CI) has been plagued by a debauched image, with
limited interest stemming from vibrant talented South African youth for a protracted period
of time. This has seen the industry age in terms of personnel and role players, which in effect
is detrimental to the industry and its means to compete locally and internationally. The
research starts off by establishing why youth around the country are not interested in pursuing
a career in the CI. Thereafter a proposal was made to utilise youth development programmes
(YDPs) in the Western Cape Province, as a key driver to establish the above mentioned
interest. However, YDPs were questioned in terms of their general implementation capacity.
In addition they were also questioned in terms of their capacity to raise construction industry
interest among youth. A survey of literature was followed by an empirical study, which
generated primary data. A survey was initially conducted among various youth members.
Thereafter interviews were conducted with youth leaders in the province. The findings
indicate that there is a youth development strategy (YDS) as well as YDPs in place. However
it should be noted that these YDSs and YDPs are not adequately implemented, which in
essence affects the general development of youth in the region, but more importantly to this
research study, contributes to the lack of CI interest among the youth. In order to increase CI
interest among the surrounding youth it is empirical that community leaders as well as
stakeholders utilise and implement the YDSs and YDPs set out by local, provincial and
national government.
Keywords:
Construction Industry, Development Programmes, Employment, South Africa
Introduction
According to Makhene and Thwala (2011), there seems to be a lack of image and well-
defined career path in the South African construction industry. Tucker, Bennett and
Eickmann (2001) mentions that in a survey of high school students conducted by the national
business employment weekly, the career ‗Construction Worker‘ came in as number 247 out
of a possible 250 as an attractive career option. Makhene and Thwala, (2011) however
confers that today‘s youth view construction work as unappetising work and unattractive for
a variety of reasons:
Not limited to being dirty;
Physically challenging;
Moving around the country to where the projects are, and
Often dangerous.
143
Based on the factors referred by Makhene and Thwala, (2011), the youths pursue other
careers, and these contribute to the current shortages of skilled workers inflow into the
construction industry (Makhene and Thwala, 2011).
To date, several solutions have been proposed to alleviate the problem of skilled-worker
supply and shortages in the construction industry, these include increased wages and other
incentives: such as guaranteed overtime and implementation of training incentives, in
addition to the employment of foreign labour, outsourcing construction work to foreign
sources and the reduction of demand through automotive and technology (Pappas, 2004).
However, not much has been done to attract the interest of youths in the South African
construction industry (Makhene and Thwala, 2011: 115). It is this regard that YDPs need to
serve as the key driver, to develop and enhance the youths‘ interest on CI.
Literature Review
Youth Development
Sogwagwa (2010) is of the opinion that, the concept of ―youth development‖ often appears ill-defined
and messy for research purposes. Sogwagwa (2010) mentions that there is inadequate clarity on youth
development as a phenomenon. However, in Table 1, various researchers have attempted to define
youth development.
Table 1: Various Researchers‘ Definition of Youth Development as a Concept
Youth development definition Source
Youth development is an evolutionary progression in which all young people are
engaged in attempting to build skills, competencies, to meet their social needs and for
the development of the community.
Pittman (1993: 3)
Youth development is a development method which focuses on skills development. National Youth
Development Agency
(2013: 2)
Youth development is an intentional comprehensive approach that provides space,
opportunities and support for young people to maximise their individual and collective
creative energies for personal development as well as development of the broader
society of which they are an integral part.
Tshabalala-Msimang
(2008: 11)
Youth development is a process by which youth develop the personal, social, academic
and citizenship competencies necessary for adolescence and adult life based on their
capacities, strengths and formative needs.
Youth Work Central
(2014: 1)
Youth Work Central (2014) postulates that youth development is both a philosophy and an approach.
As a philosophy, youth development emphasizes the importance of young people‘s personal
development and their contributions to their communities. However, youth development as an
approach is an effective method for supporting young people in order for them to achieve their desired
outcomes. This approach can be integrated into any kind of service or YDP which should:
Engage youth as resources, not simply recipients of services;
Focus on strengthening youth, not attempting to ―fix‖ them;
Recognise that preventing problems does not by itself promote development, and
Ensure that youth are included as a part of the planning and decision-making processes.
The Western Cape Government (WCG) (2013a) is of the opinion that the above mentioned approach
is supported by a conceptual framework which allows for the graphical understanding of the concept
of youth development. This conceptual framework is illustrated in Figure 1.
144
Figure 1: A conceptual framework for understanding youth development (Source: WCG, 2013a: 13)
Youth Development Strategy and Programmes in the Western Cape Province
WCG (2013a) opines that the youth is the lifeblood of the province. It is in this regard that the WCG
(2013a) wants, to ensure that by the age of 25, majority of the Western Cape‘s youth will possess the
tools needed to take advantage of the opportunities which surround them, and will be equipped to lead
a life which they would be able to value. The purpose therefore of the YDS, is to create continuous
support, opportunities and services for all young people in order for them to better engage with their
environment and successfully transition into responsible, independent, and stable adults (WCG,
2013a). The YDS therefore, focuses on young people in the ‗pre-youth‘ phase between the ages of 10
and 14 years and the ‗youth‘ phase between 15 and 24 (WCG, 2013b). According to WCG (2013b:
13), the YDS is based on five pillars, which is supported by a common goal, various programmes per
pillar as well as, various objectives per pillar (Figure 2).
Figure 2: YDS and YDP model (Source: WCG, 2013a: 3)
145
Based on Figure 2, it is evident that the YDS as well as its YDPs are well documented. In
addition, when looking at the third column of the figure, namely: Economic Opportunities, it
is evident that the YDPs under this column cater for youth in terms of entering and building
links with regards to the job market. However, according to Van Rensberg (2014) and
Webster (2014), the question is: Are the programmes which are shown under this column
implemented? If ‗Yes‘, do the programmes create possible links between developing youth
and the CI?
Research Methodology
The mixed method used open-ended questionnaire surveys and interviews as research tools.
By utilising open-ended questionnaire surveys and interviews as research tools for this study,
the researcher was able to identify subtle nuances and avoid inducing responses, which may
occur when using predominantly close-ended questionnaires (Greenfield, 2002).
Questionnaire administration
An initial questionnaire survey was administered among youth in the Western Cape to
investigate if they had ever attended YDPs and if ‘Yes‘, to further investigate if they were
exposed to any form of career guidance which specifically aligns itself towards the
construction industry. The data for the survey were collected from 75 youth members
randomly, within various youth groups in the province. The semi-structured questionnaire
had six questions, which pertain to specific YDP elements. A mix of closed and open–ended
questions was utilised. The administration of the questionnaire was based on a purposive
sample. A total of 75 questionnaires were administered of which 60 were useable, which
equates to an 80% response rate.
Interviews
Ten YDP facilitators were interviewed in the study. The first section of the interview
scrutinised what programmes are currently being delivered within the various areas of the
Western Cape. The second section of the interview dealt with determining the opinions of the
YDP facilitator with regards to the YDS and YDPs in terms of their implementation. The
main objective of the interview was to determine the role YDPs could play in terms of
developing construction industry interests among the surrounding youth. A combination of
semi-structured and unstructured interview methods were employed to enable maximum
input from the interviewees while allowing data to be collected uniformly (Bloor and Wood,
2006). The interviews enabled the researcher the opportunity to develop and analyse the parts
of the project that needed to be considered in a more detailed way. In the first part of the
semi-structured interview, the interviewer went through a set of questions (pro-forma)
through which the necessary data were collected. During this process, the interviewee gained
a better understanding of the research undertaken and developed a rapport / trust which was
essential for the second part of the interview (Hesse-Biber and Leavy, 2006). During the
second phase, the interviews were unstructured, thus catering for an in-depth discussion over
an area, which during the first phase was identified as of additional value to the research. It
should however be noted that the interview participants were also purposively selected.
Data collection challenges
146
It should be noted that there were some challenges with regards to the questionnaire survey.
This was due to minor interpretation issues, which were made evident by certain respondents.
This dilemma did not pose a real threat to the research study as questions were clarified and
eventually answered. However, a small delay in terms of the data collection was observed.
The interviews had no challenges as questions were asked and answered uniformly.
Findings and Discussion
Questionnaires
In response to question one in Table 2, 7% of the respondents said that they were aware who
the youth leader is in their area, 93% were not aware with regards to this question. In terms of
attending YDPs, 35% of the respondents concurred that they have attended YDPs in their
respective areas; however 65% said they have never attended any. For the 35% who have
stipulated that they have attended YDPs in their areas, a third question was posed as to
whether they have received any form of career advice during the YDPs, 60% answered ―Yes‖
and 40% answered ―No‖. Ones again for the 60% who have stipulated that they have received
career advice during YDPs, a fourth question was posed as to whether the construction
industry as a career path has ever been discussed as part of a career advice session during the
YDPs which they have attended, 18% answered ―Yes‖ and 82% answered ―No‖. The last
question asked respondents to indicate on a list of twenty career path options, which career
path interests them most. Please note, this data is interpreted from Table 3. From Table 3 it is
tabulated that 20% of the respondents chose ―Medical Doctor‖ which was the highest ranked
career option out of the options provided. 18% of the respondents chose ―Construction
Worker‖ which ranked second; 10% chose ―Accountant‖ which ranked third; and 8% chose
―Traffic Officer‖ and ―Pilot‖ which ranked fourth.
Table 2: Summary of Responses to the Questionnaire Survey Questions
Question Response (%)
Yes No
1.1 Are you familiar with who the youth leader is in your area? 7 93
1.2 Have you ever attended a youth development programme (YDP) in your
area? 65 35
1.3 Have you ever been exposed to any form of career advice at the time you
attended the YDP? Please note, only attempt to answer this question, if you
answered ‗Yes‘ in Question 1.3.
60 40
1.4 Has the ―construction industry‖ as a career path been discussed as part of a
career advice topic within the YDP? Please note, only attempt to answer this
question, if you answered ‗Yes‘ in Question 1.4
18 82
Interview responses and findings
The majority of the YDP facilitators that were interviewed stipulated that no formal YDPs are
currently implemented. However, informal workshops include:
Soup kitchens;
Tuberculoses workshops;
Teenage pregnancy workshops;
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) workshops, and
Generic motivational workshops.
147
The reason for these informal workshops is that national, provincial as well as local
government all have YDSs and YDPs in place, such as the one represented in Figure 1. These
YDSs and YDPs represent the formal programmes which need to be driven down to the
surrounding communities, by the ruling counsellors. However, to the majority of the YDP
facilitators, this action is not taking place. Therefore, the overall opinion among YDP
facilitators with regards to YDS and YDPs, is that they exist on paper but are non-existent in
terms of implementation. When asked about the role YDPs could play in terms of developing
construction industry interest among youth, many of the YDP facilitators were pessimistic in
their response. The YDP facilitators were of the opinion that if major challenges already exist
with regards to getting national, provincial as well as local YDS and YDPs implemented
physically, how long would it take for other ideas such as ―developing construction interest
among youth‖ to be heard, documented and implemented formally?
Table 3: Summary of Responses to the Questionnaire Survey Questions
Career Path Response
(%)
Rank
1.5.1 Accountant 10 3
1.5.2 Human Resource Officer 3 7
1.5.3 Lawyer 3 7
1.5.4 Policeman 3 7
1.5.5 Construction Worker 18 2
1.5.6 Medical Doctor 20 1
1.5.7 Professional Nurse 2 8
1.5.8 Fireman 2 8
1.5.9 Traffic Officer 8 4
1.5.10 Banking/Financial Consultant 5 6
1.5.11 Pilot 8 4
1.5.12 Military Worker 0 9
1.5.13 IT Technician 5 6
1.5.14 Physiotherapist 0 9
1.5.15 Dentist 0 9
1.5.16 Pharmacist 3 7
1.5.17 Teacher 7 5
1.5.18 Preacher 0 9
1.5.19 Sports Psychologist 3 7
1.5.20 Chef 0 9
However the YDP facilitators were optimistic of the fact that they would employ the idea into
their informal programmes which are currently being implemented. In addition, many YDP
facilitators were of the opinion that through their informal programmes, youth are
continuously being developed, with or without national, provincial or local assistance. The
general overview of the YDP facilitators in the various areas of the Western Cape Province
was that YDS and YDPs has the right model on paper to firstly, achieve proper youth
development and secondly, has the right structure to facilitate the development of
construction industry interest among the surrounding youth.
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Conclusion and Further Research
This paper establishes at the beginning, the key reasons why youth around the country are not
interested in pursuing a career in the CI industry. Thereafter a proposal was made to utilise
YDPs in the Western Cape Province as a key driver to establish the above mentioned interest.
However, YDPs were questioned in terms of their general implementation capacity. In
addition, YDPs were also questioned in terms of their capacity to raise construction interest
among youth. The findings indicated that there is YDS as well as YDPs in place. It was
however highlighted that these YDSs and YDPs are currently not adequately implemented,
which in essence affects the general development of youth in the region, but more
importantly to this research study, contributes to the lack of CI interest among the youth.
In summary, in order to enhance construction industry career interest among the youth, it is
empirical that community leaders as well as stakeholders effectively utilise and implement
the YDSs and YDPs, set out by local, provincial and national government. It should be noted
that the research study reported on is in its initial phase and the findings are best described as
‗exploratory‘ as future studies should realise more conclusive results.
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149
Western Cape Government. (2013a), Western Cape Youth Development Strategy-2013.
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150
An architectural model for a healthier and safer
construction industry in South Africa Craig Goldswain
1 and John Smallwood
2
1Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying,
Walter Sisulu University,
[email protected] 2Department of Construction Management,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, [email protected]
Abstract:
Insufficient attention is given to construction health and safety (H&S), inclusive of
ergonomics, by architectural designers despite evidence that construction accidents can
be reduced by up to 50% through safer design. This paper reports on a recently
developed architectural design model aimed at reducing the rate of accidents in the
construction industry of South Africa. Four provisional studies incorporating qualitative
and quantitative techniques were undertaken in the Eastern Cape Province, involving
architectural designers registered with the South African Council for the Architectural
Profession (SACAP). These produced nine structured questions for use in the main
study located within the action research (AR) paradigm utilising focus group (FG)
sessions to petition rich qualitative data from participants registered with the SACAP.
The data was synthesised with literature and the provisional studies, and yielded a
provisional model which was later validated and refined. The final model incorporated a
core model within a greater process model and use thereof relies on appropriate
knowledge of architectural designers. While the entire model is divulged here, only the
development of the core model is discussed due to space constraints. It is recommended
that tertiary architectural educators and continuous professional development (CPD)
trainers use the model to develop appropriate education and training programmes.
Keywords: Architectural design model, Construction health & safety, ergonomics
Introduction
This paper draws on a recent PhD (Construction Management) study, which realised a
model to enhance architectural design in terms of designing for construction H&S. The
traditional measures of project success, being cost, quality, and schedule no longer
suffice, and a lack of attention to construction H&S ultimately increases project costs
(Schneider, 2006; Smallwood, 2006a). Despite the expectations of the Construction
Regulations (Republic of South Africa, 2003; 2014), architectural designers
inadequately practice safer design. The out-dated report of 1999 stemming from the
Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases (COID) Act includes 24
industries in South Africa and places the construction industry ninth in terms of accident
frequency, fifth in terms of accident severity, and third in terms of accident fatalities,
and demonstrates 14 418 medical aid injuries, 4 587 temporary disablements, 315
permanent disablements, and 137 fatalities in a single year. While Behm (2006)
suggests that up to one third of the hazards leading to accidents could have been
mitigated through safer design, the HSE (2003) indicates that up to half of the instances
studied could have been mitigated through alternative design. The aim of the PhD study
151
was to realise a paradigm shift in architectural design relative to construction H&S,
while the objectives sought to: conduct a review of relevant literature, comprehend the
worth of relevant extant models and lists of remedies; consider the relevance of the
above-mentioned within the context of South Africa; develop a model which would
encourage architectural designers in South Africa to engage in designing for
construction H&S, and validate the model through SACAP registered architectural
designers. The research intertwined literature with four provisional studies undertaken
in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. These served to provide local insight, and
generated nine structured questions for the main study, which was located in the action
research (AR) paradigm using focus groups (FGs). Synthesis of the data with literature
and the provisional studies gave rise to a provisional model comprising six model
components with sub-components. The provisional model was validated and refined and
simultaneously tested the research hypotheses by means of questionnaires directed at
the FG participants.
Construction health, safety, and ergonomics
Construction accidents
While ‗proximal factors‘ may occur within the site environment, ‗distal factors‘ such as
design, choice of material and equipment, and the situation in which they are used can
lead to a range of ‗active failures‘ (Haslam et al., 2005; HSE, 2003). Relative to SA, the
cidb (2009) reports the dominating causes of injuries as struck by (44%), falls onto
different levels (14%), and striking against (10%). The dominating causes of fatalities
were MVAs (47%), struck by (17%) and falls on to different levels (17%). Penetrating
wounds (30%) and superficial wounds (31%) predominated in terms of the nature of
injuries sustained. Multiple injuries caused 47% of fatalities, while injuries to hands
(24%), head and neck (19%), and legs (16%) were common anatomic regions involved.
In terms of agency, automobiles (10%) and hand tools (6%) dominated as causes of
injuries. Internationally and locally, the main causes of accidents, in order, are ‗falls
onto different levels‘, ‗motor vehicle accidents‘ (MVAs), ‗struck by‘, ‗inhalation,
absorption and ingestion‘, and ‗work-related musculoskeletal disorders (WMSDs) or
body stressing‘ (cidb, 2009). Hazardous chemical substances (HCSs) can enter the body
through inhalation, absorption, and ingestion. Inhalation of airborne contaminants such
as dusts, fumes, vapours and gasses can result in eye irritation, respiratory tract
problems and damage to organs. Fine dust particles can reach the lungs leading to
pneumoconiosis, asbestosis, or lung cancers. Inhalation of solvents can result in
respiratory problems and central nervous system damage, while complex fumes given
off by welding can lead to metal-fume fever. Absorption of HCSs such as solvents
through the skin can cause dermatitis, while working with concrete can cause allergic
contact dermatitis. Handling of bitumen and similar products can lead to dermatitis and
acne related skin disease. Ingestion refers to the swallowing of HCSs erroneously or
through carelessness such as eating without washing of hands. MVAs occurring on
construction sites can be mitigated through improved design of access routes and
warning signs, and by creating more awareness. ‗Falls onto different levels‘ are caused
by tripping, falling from scaffolding or temporary works, falling from ladders,
equipment or platforms, falling into excavations, falling off of buildings and falling
through openings. Many of these falls can be attributed to design and scheduling, and a
lack of prevention efforts. ‗Struck by‘ accidents are often caused by falling materials,
plant, equipment, or structures. Other risks include exposure to electrical hazards,
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contact with machine components and vehicles, explosions and fire, excavation
collapses, and working in restrained spaces (Smallwood and Deacon, 2001; Behm,
2006; HSE, 2003; Bureau of Labour Statistics – US Department of Labour, 2007 &
2008; cidb, 2009; Deacon and Smallwood, 2010; Weitz and Luxenberg, 2010; HSE
2010). The Construction Regulations (Republic of South Africa, 2014) legalise
designers to ―… take cognisance of ergonomic design principles in order to minimise
ergonomic related hazards in all phases of the life cycle of a structure.‖ Ergonomic
problems include repetitive movements, bending or twisting, climbing, working with
heavy or inconveniently sized materials, working in awkward or cramped positions,
reaching overhead, using vibrating equipment, noise, working in hot, humid, wet or cold
conditions, retaining specific positions for extended periods, and working while injured
(WorkCover NSW, 2001; Smallwood, 2006b; cidb, 2009; Deacon and Smallwood,
2010; Safe Work Australia, 2010; HSE 2010).
Engaging healthier and safer design
Hetherington (1995) notes that designers ―… will only be expected to take into account
those risks which can reasonably be foreseen at the time at which the design was
prepared‖ and should focus on ―… avoiding and combating H&S risks inherent in the
construction process.‖ He promotes H&S interventions during the ‗concept stage‘,
‗design evolution‘ and the ‗detailed specifications‘, and proposes that designers ensure
that hazards and risk information is provided with their designs. Technologies chosen
by designers have a direct influence on construction performance and strategic
objectives (Chang and Lee, 2004). It is important that stakeholders recognise the design
and construction relationship, and decisions regarding the optimum method and
sequence of operations should be included in the design process and documented for
distribution (Hendrickson, 2008). Hazard identification and risk assessments (HIRAs)
during the design process are fundamental in order to implement appropriate design. In
concurring, Gangolells et al. (2010) identifies construction processes such as
earthworks, foundations, and structures, among others, where HIRAs should be
undertaken toward risk mitigation. Evaluating risks through considering the probability
of occurrence and the severity of the consequences is paramount. Exposure in the form
of time and quantity of work also exacerbates risks (Gangolells et al., 2010). Carter and
Smith (2006) focus on accident causation models and how hazards lead to accidents.
They promote HIRAs as a means of risk management, but note that unidentified hazards
are of concern. Method statements are a means of mitigation and must comprise
adequate description, location, sequence, resources, and HIRAs. They also note
‗knowledge and information barriers‘ constituting a lack of coherent knowledge, and
‗process and procedure barriers‘ constituting a lack of a standard approach and task
structure relating to hazards.
Research Methodology
Provisional studies provide valuable insights toward the success of main studies (van
Teijlingen and Hundly, 2001). The PhD study used four provisional studies in order to
progressively build data within the context of SA. The target population and sample
selection comprised architectural designers registered with the SACAP and working in
the Eastern Cape region of SA. These included: a quantitative survey to establish the
perceptions of architectural designers relative to mitigating construction H&S risks in
which a survey comprising 15 appropriate statements and an open ended question was
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distributed to 102 architectural designers, and a total of 18 responses (17.5%) were
received; a qualitative study comprising 13 semi-structured interview questions was
administered to 10 willing participants following 60 phone calls (16,7%) in order to
determine what would encourage architectural designers to mitigate risk through design;
a quantitative study sought to establish a design model framework toward improved
construction H&S. A variety of approaches such as direct statements, three cross-
reference matrix tables, and open ended opportunities were presented.
The survey was administered to 76 potential participants and 12 responses (15.8%) were
received, and a quantitative study sought to identify key inputs which could feed into
the model framework. 20 statements, three semi-structured questions, and an open
ended question was administered among 73 architectural designers, and a total of 15
responses (20.5%) were received. The provisional studies facilitated the development of
nine structured questions for the main study, which made use of FGs within the AR
paradigm in order to solicit rich qualitative data from architectural designers registered
with the SACAP. FGs were selected due to the observation that architectural designers
lacked knowledge relative to the topic, and richer data could be gathered from FG
participants who demonstrated more commitment. The process involved planning,
which included: the number of FGs; the population; the size of the randomly selected
sample, the choice of venues, and distribution of invitations. The first FG held in the
Buffalo City Metropolitan Municipality region attracted eight participants, as planned,
however only four participants were available for the second FG session in the Nelson
Mandela Metropolitan Municipality region.
Anonymity of the participants was guaranteed and consent forms were signed. The nine
structured questions were posed to both FGs. The events were audio-video recorded.
The 12 participants included seven Professional Architects (58.3%), two Professional
Senior Architectural Technologists (16.7%), and three Professional Architectural
Technologists (25%), with the average age of 45 years and experience averaging 20.75
years. Unfortunately there was only one female (8.3%) participant. The recorded data
was transcribed. The synthesis of the FG data with literature and the provisional study
data gave rise to a provisional model. Carter and Smith (2006) advise that ―…
validation is a crucial aspect and a model cannot be considered complete without it.‖ A
questionnaire with appropriate statements was developed and disseminated to the FG
participants, with respondents expected to indicate on a ‗Likert‘ type scale of 1 (totally
disagree) to 5 (totally agree) the extent to which they concur, and each was underpinned
with an open-ended question. The research hypotheses were simultaneously tested with
statements linking the model to the research hypotheses. Likert type rating scales were
once again applied.
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MECHANISMS
KEY OUTPUTS
DISSEMINATION
Figure 1: The Goldswain Process Model for safer architectural design in South Africa
Findings and Discussion
The transcribed data was grouped into themes and then into the model components
which emerged. While the entire model derived from the authors PhD research is
included overleaf, only the development of the core model is included in the ‗findings
and discussion‘ which follows.
The Goldswain Core Model
SACAP architectural
work stages (1 – 6)
A
ppli
cati
on o
f th
e N
BR
(P
arts
A –
X) Design opportunity window:
Design options
Design selection
H&S reviews
Sign-off or revisit 1
H&S checklists
H&S data records
Sign-off or revisit 2
Changes to design
Sign-off or revisit 3
Engaging people
Encouragement
Upstream design ownership
Multi-stakeholder approach
KEY INPUTS
Relevant literature; Causes of accidents; Information on hazards and risks; International
approaches and models; Design recommendations;
Recent studies and on-going research and development
Improved H&S
information on
plans
Improved design for
construction H&S
Improved H&S
information in
specifications
Improved H&S
residual risk
information
Clients; authorities; consultants, tenderers; contractors, and subcontractors
Education and training
Awareness
Tertiary architectural
education
CPD programmes
C
on
tin
uo
us
info
rmat
ion
fee
db
ack
lo
op
Design knowledge window:
Construction processes
Construction programming
Contextual H&S
Causes of Accidents
Hazard Identification and
Risk Assessments (HIRAs)
Project type and complexity
Design recommendations
Lifecycles of buildings
The Goldswain Core Model
155
The core model comprises a model framework, a flexible design process within the
framework, and divulges a range of knowledge aspects, which architectural designers
require in order to engage healthier and safer design.
The third provisional study sought to identify documentation familiar to architectural
designers, which could constitute a ‗model framework‘. Data favoured the application
of the National Building Regulations (NBR), whilst the matrix method of questioning
incorporated the SACAP architectural work stages. Later the importance of the SACAP
architectural work stages become evident and was interrogated in the fourth provisional
study. This reaffirmed the NBR notion with a mean score (MS) of 4.00, while the
SACAP architectural work stages dominated with a MS of 4.20 against the average
score of 3.00. These offset Work Breakdown Structures (WBS) with a MS of 2.33, the
Preambles for Construction Trades MS of 2.47, and the Bills of Quantities with a MS of
2.5. The range of construction processes identified by Gangolells et al. (2010) such as
earthworks, foundations, and structures, among others, closely resemble the parts of the
NBR. FG data demonstrates the appropriateness of the NBR: ―When you look at the
NBR - if you just look at the index it‘ll cover the points‖. Relevant to the SACAP
architectural stages of work, data considers checking the NBR items: ―At each work
stage … you are combining your processes with your items as well‖. A matrix
framework comprising the SACAP architectural work stages as the X-axis and the parts
of the NBR as the Y-axis was adopted. The fourth provisional study included the
statement of ‗A guiding model should include a process which architectural designers
can follow in order to design for construction health, safety, and ergonomics‘. The
responses yielded a MS of 3.60, above the average of 3.00, thus indicating possible need
for inclusion of a design process. Given the opportunity to explore healthier, safer
design, this was termed the ‗design opportunity window‘. The CDM Regulations (2007)
and the South African Construction Regulations (Republic of South Africa, 2003 &
2014) place expectancy on designers to engage healthier safer design processes, while
the United Kingdom‘s (UKs) Gateway model (HSE, 2004a) and the Australian CHAIR
model (WorkCover NSW, 2001) incorporate means for designers to review their work
as the design progresses. The second provisional study interrogated the inclusion of
construction H&S into the design process. Data proposes that ―‗It should be part of
integral thinking ... part of design and documentation‖, and ―The fundamentals of health
and safety should be discussed … and should be monitored and recorded.‖ The findings
demonstrated a cyclic design process, ultimately weighing up ‗design options‘ and
leading to ‗design selection‘. The data includes: ―It is backwards and forwards
processes until you get to the final. You can‘t say I have now finished Stage 1 … the
ideal of course would be to say I am finished with work Stage 1, work Stage 2, now it is
the final stage of development …‖ The UK‘s Gateway model includes H&S reviews at
specific ‗Gateways‘ throughout the project phases (HSE, 2004a). The Australian
CHAIR model also includes the ―... opportunity to sit down, pause and reflect on
possible problems‖ (WorkCover NSW, 2001). The third provisional study included the
statement: ‗It would be beneficial to have an approach or model which includes a
mechanism for interim assessments during the various stages of the design process‘,
which achieved a MS of 3.50, above the midpoint of 3.00, thus indicating likely
inclusion of H&S reviews. FG data supports this in that ―… you‘ve got to have a health
and safety review.‖ The Gateway model (HSE, 2004a) offers a roadmap or checklist
which designers can use. The Australian CHAIR model (WorkCover NSW, 2001)
makes use of ‗guidewords‘, which mimics a checklist. The fourth provisional study
included the statement: ‗A guiding model should include checklists and allow
156
opportunity for design notes in order to assist the process‘, which realised a MS of 4.07,
well above the midpoint of 3.00. FG data includes: ―I am thinking about a checklist …
people specialising in SANS 204 (NBR) - if they can check your drawings for example
… to see if you have the finer details right.‖ Behms‘ (2006) research into accident
reports and the HSEs‘ (2003) in depth study of 100 construction accidents would be
impossible without accurate data records. Data from the second provisional study
recognised that ―The fundamentals of H&S should be discussed … and should be
monitored and recorded‖, and FG data includes: ―You may be making a choice that has
a higher risk, because of other factors. It needs to be recorded why and then how you
mitigate the risk.‖ Hendrickson (2008) claims that ‗changes to design‘ during
construction frequently occur, which alter the course of construction and exacerbate
risk. Changes to design, often referred to as Variation Orders (VOs), were not
considered within the provisional studies, however these are common. The statement of:
‗A guiding model should include a process which architectural designers can follow in
order to design for construction health, safety, and ergonomics‘ was provided in the
fourth provisional study, which realised a MS of 3.60, above the midpoint of 3.00, and
theoretically incorporates VOs. FG data includes: ―I think for the majority, the bulk of it
is Ok. If a V.O. comes along we assess it as part of the overall design which goes back
to the beginning.‖ The HSE (2004a) expects ‗sign-off‘ after each design review, before
progressing. Sign-off was omitted from the provisional studies however such literature
led to probing this in the FG scenario. FG data included: ―The responsible person can
sign it off‖, and ―The problem with signing off is you are signing off your
documentation or your process, you can‘t sign off what the contractor is going to do‖.
When to ‗sign-off‘ was not questioned, but the cyclic nature of design offers flexible
opportunities. These are included in the ‗design opportunity window‘, which includes:
Design options; design selection; H&S reviews; sign-off or revisit 1; H&S checklists;
H&S data records; sign-off or revisit 2; changes to design, and sign-off or revisit 3.
In order to engage the ‗design opportunity window‘, designers would require an
adequate knowledge of healthier, safer design. The question arises as to what specific
knowledge, in order to include it in the so called ‗design knowledge window‘. FG data
included: ―If the designer can refine the design and say there might be better processes
… to achieve the goal, one needs the knowledge.‖ Chang and Lee (2004) insist that
knowledge of construction processes linked to appropriate technology is needed, while
Hendrickson (2008) integrates design and construction as a system. The fourth
provisional study data included: ―Designers and architectural practitioners should be
actively exposed to the physical construction process of projects to ensure a practical
understanding of the erection and construction process and constraints‖. FG data
included: ―I think everyone needs to understand the construction process. We are sitting
at the moment with a situation, we have a huge part of the industry that doesn‘t - they
have no idea how that is going to turn into a building. You can‘t design and design
safely if you don‘t understand the construction process.‖ Lester (2007) and Hendrickson
(2008) proffer fundamental scheduling tools to optimise sequencing and timing of
activities. The HSE (2004b) includes influence networks where specific influences have
causal implications. The second provisional study brought this to the fore in that ―some
sort of methodology is crucial ... a method or awareness of the building programme‖.
FG data included: ―… that way we can probably say listen the guy is not going to lay
the carpet until such time as the walls are painted …‖, and that ―You should have a
program.‖ An understanding of the issues surrounding healthier, safer design is
essential. Literature provides an adequate backdrop for this, and architectural designers
157
should be encouraged to improve their contextual understanding. FG data included: ―I
think first off, a full understanding of the relevant information that is already there‖; and
―They need to have a basic design and construction health and safety background‖. The
main causes of accidents were identified within the literature review. The fourth
provisional study included the statement: ‗Architectural designers would need to
understand the causes of construction accidents in order to design for construction
health, safety, and ergonomics‘. This achieved a MS of 4.07, well above the midpoint
score of 3.00. While FG data considers causes of accidents as ‗risk‘, it includes:
―Designing at a place with high wind speeds and you have a façade system, so how do
you get that up … I think it is identification of risks … and I have to have it for that so it
gives your health and safety risks.‖ Relative to HIRAs, Carter and Smith (2006) offer
concern where hazards and risks are not identified. The first provisional study
established that architectural designers in SA do not adequately conduct HIRAs, and the
statement: ‗Architectural designers would need to identify hazards and undertake risk
assessments in order to design for construction health, safety, and ergonomics‘ was
included in the fourth provisional study. The response achieved a MS of 3.53, above the
midpoint score of 3.00, and FG data included: ―… so there is an inherent risk of digging
down trenches 3, 4, 5m down and say … we have to have personnel down below ground
level. I think the professional should identify risks …‖, and if unresolved, ―They should
come up with a mitigation plan with the constructor.‖ Numerous researchers proffer that
‗falls from height‘ contributes significantly to injuries and fatalities (Haslam et al.,
2005; Bureau of Labour Statistics – US Department of Labour, 2008; cidb, 2009; Safe
Work Australia, 2010, HSE, 2010b), while Gangolells et al. (2010) include
consideration of single storey residential buildings. This portrays ‗project type and
complexity‘ as important. The second provisional study findings include: ―… the design
may be challenging and unconventional …‖, and that ―there is always a way to carry out
works safely, but it is costly for unconventional projects‖. FG data notes that ―…there
are more complicated buildings being built in the first world countries … I think the
complexity high rise etc. has possibly got to do with the high mortality or injury here.‖
Behm (2006) advocates Gambatese, Mroszczyk, and Weinstein, and provides a range of
‗design recommendations‘. The fourth provisional study included the statement:
‗Consideration of existing design recommendations would prove beneficial to
developing a guiding model suitable for use in the context of South Africa‘, which
achieved a MS of 3.79, above the midpoint score of 3.00. FG data included: ―Probably
yes - again one needs to look at what is the environment in which that design
recommendation has been made against our environment.‖ The provisional studies did
entertain ‗lifecycles of buildings‘, however Cameron et al. (2005) discussed the
Gateway approach and identified ‗concept, feasibility, design, construction, and
maintenance‘. WorkCover NSW (2001) makes reference to ‗construction, maintenance,
repair and demolition‘. FG data includes: ―… look at the life cycle of the building not
just the design and construct phase‖, and ―From concept to final demolition.‖ Thus, the
‗design knowledge window‘ includes: construction processes; construction
programming; contextual H&S; causes of accidents; HIRAs; project type and
complexity; design recommendations, and lifecycles of buildings.
Conclusion and Further Research
Toward a paradigm shift in architecture, the PhD study set out to develop a model
which would assist architectural designers to incorporate construction H&S into the
design process. The synthesis of literature, the four provisional studies, and the rich
158
qualitative data emanating from the FG sessions gave rise to a provisional model which
was validated and refined while simultaneously testing the research hypotheses. Much
of this could not be included here; however the development of the core model was
included as the focus of this paper. The core model incorporates the six SACAP
architectural work stages and the parts of the NBR as a matrix type model framework.
Within this, the ‗design opportunity window‘ includes, design options, design selection,
H&S reviews, H&S checklists, H&S data records, changes to design, and three
integrated sign-off opportunities. The process is supported by the ‗design knowledge
window‘ which includes construction processes, construction programming, contextual
H&S, causes of accidents, HIRAs, project type and complexity, design
recommendations, and lifecycles of buildings. The greater study implores architectural
designers to take upstream design ownership and to involve a multitude of stakeholders
in order to engage designing for a healthier and safer construction industry.
Recommendation is made for key players such as academics at tertiary education
institutions offering architectural programmes, and those involved in architectural CPD
programmes to use the model as basis for further research, development and
implementation of appropriate education and training programmes.
References Behm, M. (2006) An Analysis of Construction Accidents from a Design Perspective
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analysis-of-construction-accidents-from-a-design-perspective.html [Accessed 9
September 2010]
Bureau of Labour Statistics – US Department of Labour (BLS). (2007) Fatal
occupational injuries by occupation and event or exposure, All United States, 2007
[online]. Available from: http://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cftb0227.pdf [Accessed
20 April 2010]
Bureau of Labour Statistics – US Department of Labour (BLS). (2008) Fatal
occupational injuries by occupation and event or exposure, All United States, 2008
[online]. Available from: http://www.bls.gov/iif/oshwc/cfoi/cftb0236.pdf [Accessed
20 April 2010]
CDM. (2007) The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 No. 320
[online]. Available from: http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2007/uksi_20070320_en_1
[Accessed 05 March 2009]
Cameron, I. Duff, A. and Hare, B. (2005) Achieving integration of Safety, Health,
Environment and Quality Management in Construction Project Management by a
Best Practice ―Gateway‖ model. 4th
Triennial International Conference, Rethinking
and Revitalizing Construction Safety, Health, Environment and Quality, 17 – 20
May 2005, Port Elizabeth: CREATE, pp. 323-331.
Carter, G. and Smith, S. (2006) Safety Hazard Identification on Construction Projects.
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, February 2006, pp. 197-
205.
Chang, A. and Lee, K. (2004) Nature of Construction Technology [online]. Available
from: http://www.iglc2004.dk/_root/media/13087_081-chang-lee-final.pdf
[Accessed 5 December 2013]
Construction Industry Development Board (cidb). (2009) Construction Health and
Safety in South Africa - Status & Recommendations, Pretoria, cidb.
Deacon, C.H. (2003) The health status of construction workers (M Cur). University
of Port Elizabeth.
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Deacon, C. and Smallwood, J.J. (2010). Ergonomics in construction: Where does it
hurt? ergonomics SA, Vol. 22(2), pp. 49-65.
Gangolells, M. Casals, M. Forcada, N. Roca, X. and Fuertes, A. (2010) Mitigating
construction safety risks using prevention through design. Journal of Safety
Research, Vol. 41, pp. 107-122.
Haslam, R.A., Hide, S.A., Gibb, A.G.F., Gyi, D.E., Pavitt, T., Atkinson, S. and Duff,
A.R. (2005) Contributing factors in construction accidents. Journal of Applied
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Hendrickson, C. (2008) Project Management for Construction: Fundamental Concepts
for owners, Engineers, and Architects. Second edition, version 2.2. [online].
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Hetherington, T. (1995) Why involve design professionals in construction safety?
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Health and Safety Executive (HSE). (2003) Causal factors in construction accidents –
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Health and Safety Executive (HSE). (2004a) Integrated gateways: planning out health
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Health and Safety Executive (HSE). (2004b) Improving health and safety in
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161
Employers’ attitude towards health and safety (H&S)
improvement in the construction industry Z Mustapha, CO Aigbavboa
and WD Thwala
Department of Construction Management and Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
The Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 provides legislative framework to enforce
human behaviour towards safety compliance in the construction industry. This paper
examines employers‘ attitude towards health and safety improvement. It further looked at
types of motivation for safety measures, risk assessment methods and safety management
systems. This study was conducted through the use of secondary data from journals, books
and internet to achieve the objective for the study. The review of literature looked into details
of the different views from different scholars about employer‘s attitude towards health and
safety (H&S) improvement in the construction industry. The findings from the literature
review showed that employers‘ attitude contribute to encourage employees‘ safety
compliance to Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) improvement in the construction
industry. It was also mentioned that the achievement of organisation safety goals are in the
hands of the top management who lead the organisation and employees. The purpose of this
academic paper was to justify the need to know the employers‘ attitude towards H&S
improvement and further establish the types of motivation measures that will lead to safety
measures.
Keywords:
Construction, employers, health and safety, South Africa
Introduction
The construction industry plays an important role in improvement of countries‘ economic
growth. Despite the contributions to economic growth, the construction industry has always
been blamed for the high rates of accidents and fatalities. This issue has placed the
construction industry among the industries with unreasonable rates of accidents, permanent
and non-permanent disabilities and even fatalities. There are many evidences in representing
construction industry as a hazardous and inconsistent industry. High rates of accidents and
fatalities in this industry have placed it among hazardous industries (Hosseinian &
Torghabeh, 2012). According to the South African Construction Industry Development Board
(cidb) (in Smallwood, 2010), construction has the third highest fatality rate and the ninth
highest permanent disability rate per 100 000 full-time equivalent workers out of twenty-
three industries. Many building contractors are still implementing low levels of H&S
standards in South Africa, Van Vuuren (Smallwood, 2010). Construction accidents lead to
delay in project completion, increase the expenses and ruin the reputation and reliability of
contractors ((Hosseinian & Torghabeh, 2012). Construction continues to contribute a
disproportionate number of fatalities and injuries and there continues to be a high level of
162
non-compliance with the H&S Regulations in South Africa. Even though, significant efforts
have been made by several agencies to improve H&S within the construction industry,
overall construction H&S is not improving significantly (cidb, 2009). According to Michaels
(2012) employer attitude toward H&S can be viewed as a bell curve. The most negligent,
apathetic employers would be represented on the left side of the bell curve while the most
attentive, proactive employers would appear on the right, with the bell curve rising in the
centre to represent the majority of the employers who fall somewhere in the middle.
Therefore, the challenge to American OSHA‘s objective is to move this curve. The bad ones
improve, the mediocre ones get better and the good ones get to the best point. Michaels
(2012) further asserted that implementing safety and health management systems and
developing a culture of safety in workplaces can help shift that bell curve toward the side of
conscientious, safety-focused employers. Che Hassan et al. (2007) asserted that this can be
prevented if the relationship between the procedural instructions governing work and the way
in which work is done is investigated. The outcome of such an investigation will give ample
room for improvement towards behavioural safety compliance through strong effort to
comply with safety requirements by both employers and employees. The Occupational Health
and Safety (OHS) regulations enshrine discipline in the employees and serves as a strong
team to give full support towards achievement of organization safety goal and help
construction industry. It gives enough room for improvement due to understanding of the
good behaviour. This paper presents an investigation into employers‘ attitude towards H&S
improvement in the construction industry. It began with a discussion of improvement of H&S
in the construction industry, effective communication, effective H&S training and education,
and employers‘ behaviour. This is followed by the types of motivation for safety measures,
risk assessment and safety management systems.
Literature Review
Human behaviour has been noted in literature to be a major contributing factor to
construction accidents but good safety behaviour do reflects in good safety compliance. The
important criteria required to change employees behaviour concerning effective handling of
safety issues cannot be achieved without the interference of employers with a particular
pattern of behaviours. A study conducted by Fernando et al. (2008) identifies workers
characteristics and factors of safety compliance as follows: management commitment,
employee involvement, safety communication, effective safety training and effective safety
feedback. Abdullah et al. (2005) asserted that behaviour is influenced by two distinct factors:
activators and consequences. Hence, the enforcement of safety behaviour factors play the
crucial role to encourage safety compliance before the consequences occurred.
Improvement of Health and Safety in the Construction Industry
It has been informed in literature that employers‘ attitude contributes to encourage
employees‘ safety compliance to OSH improvement in the construction industry. It is the role
of top management to actively lead the organization and employees towards achievement of
organization safety goals, by showing that the organization is serious about safety. The
commitment and support that will be given by the top management would significantly drive
up the performance of safety as indicated by Jaselski et al. (Zin and Ismail, 2011). For
instance, the management approach to safety generates as well as reinforces employee
perceptions about what form of activity gets rewarded, supported and expected in a particular
setting (Panthi et al., 2012). Fernando et al. 2008) asserted that the employers should
demonstrate their commitment through strongly realization of safety compliance to safety and
ensure that everyone in the organization is certain about their safety and health
163
responsibilities. Management commitment towards H&S at the workplace can change
attitude of employees. The critical factor in understanding and explaining the work related
behaviour of employees in organizations has been linked with organizational commitment
(Bakshi et al., 2009). The safety attitude of top management that drives the safety
management behaviour of an organization can be judged primarily by evaluating their
approach towards providing strategic safety commitment and a supportive work environment
(Panthi et al., 2012).
Effective Communication
Effective communications is an essential consideration to safe and efficient workplace.
Therefore, there is the need for effective communication in the construction industry because
many construction accidents are found mainly caused by symptoms of safety non-compliance
to safety requirements (Ismail, 2007). Communication can be achieved through visible
behaviour, written communication of H&S policy statements and face to face discussions
between employer and employee. In the visible behaviour, employer can communicate the
importance of safety and health. Then, the employees soon recognize what employer regards
as important and will adopt their own behaviour accordingly. Thus, through negative
behaviour employer can undermines the safety and health culture of the organization (Zin &
Ismail, 2011). While in the written communication of H&S policy statements, statements
concerning H&S roles and responsibilities, performance standards and findings from risk
assessments are made available to employees. Whereas, face to face discussions between
employer and employee enable employees to make a personal contribution and helps them to
feel involved in the safety and health of the organization (Zin & Ismail, 2011). Ideally
employees should be able to talk to employers during safety inspection. The interaction and
communication of management with workers in terms of their commitment, support and
motivation can have a positive (or negative) influence on workers perceptions, attitudes,
competence, and behaviours towards safety (Panthi et al., 2012). Cooper, (2010) is of the
view that employees attitude can be shaped through the leadership skills exhibited by senior
management. According to Ismail (2007), quality and consistency of leadership demonstrated
by management as a role model for safety will enhance the achievement of the other safety
management objectives.
Effective Health and Safety Training and Education
Accident prevention can only take place through effective health and safety training. Hence,
education and training programmes play a significant role in enhancement of safety in
construction and it is important to increase safety awareness and change behaviour of
employees (Ghani et al., 2010). Good relationship between employers and employees on
matters such as safety talk and advice on safety matter is related to improve safety motivation
and will encourage employees‘ safety behaviour (Che Hassan, 2007). Workers need to be
aware of the hazards and risks at their workplace in order to encourage them to work in a
healthy environment and safety manner (Smallwood, 2010) because lack of training is a
barrier.
Employee Behaviour
Both employers and employees have very similar perceptions of the respective
responsibilities of each party for health and safety in the workplace. However, the employer
has the knowledge that health and safety is a set of rules and regulations that relate directly to
safety in the workplace to ensure the general wellbeing for employees (Elgood et al., 2004).
One of the greatest determinants in workplace safety, especially as employees interact amid a
host of varying safety issues is employee behaviour. Employee behaviour plays a significant
164
role in workplace safety and injury prevention (Schultz, 2004). Smallwood (2010, 240) in a
research conducted on excavation health and safety (H&S): a South African perspective has
indicated worker attitude as one of the factors leading to unsafe act of a worker. Attitude is a
key to understanding employee behaviour and prevention of on-site-job injuries. It is
mandatory for employer‘s to educate their employees on the possibility of workplace injury
before any safety programme should be instituted (Schultz, 2004). The organization must
undergo a culture change from the top and filter its way down to all employees for any sort of
attitudinal change to occur to every employees (Schultz, 2004). Central to this culture is the
feeling that safety is a top priority and nothing else. Employee attitude also relates to culture,
and can be linked to ignorance (Smallwood, 2010). If this is checked it will lead to
improvement towards health and safety in the construction industry.
Types of Motivation for Safety Measures
According to Teo et al. (2005b), incentives can be used to motivate the ones who follow the
safety rules on construction sites.‖ Motivational tools including rewards and incentives
influence to fostering safe work behaviour in construction sites (Teo et al., 2005a). Each of
these tools contains various sub tools as shown in below:
Positive Reinforcement: Monetary reward/bonus, job promotion, certificate of
recognition, rewards in kind (overseas trips), personal recognition;
Negative Reinforcement: Close and strict supervision;
Extinction: Termination of service, reporting to authorities, and
Punishments: Imposing fines, suspension from work, demotion.
Teo et al. (2005) finds that close and strict supervision among negative reinforcement is the
most effective, monetary rewards are the second, and imposing fines and suspension from
work are the third most effective way to foster safe work behaviour. Four intervention
strategies proposed by (Teo et al., 2005) can be used by managers to either encourage or
discourage certain behaviours of workers (i.e., positive reinforcement, negative
reinforcement, punishment and extinction.
Positive reinforcement: positive reinforcement provides the worker with reward consequence
for performing the desired behaviour. According to this theory, to motivate workers to
perform their jobs in a safe manner, contractors should offer incentives, praise, monetary
rewards, and promotions on the job.
Negative reinforcement: negative or avoidance reinforcement encourages workers to perform
the desired behaviour in order to avoid a negative consequence. Therefore, to motivate
workers to perform their jobs in a safe manner, contractors may use criticism or threat of
losing job and once the workers work in a safe manner, they stop receiving the undesired
outcome.
Punishment: punishment reinforcement gives the worker a negative consequence so that the
worker can stop performing an undesirable behaviour. With regard to safety of construction
site, punishments may include pay cuts, temporary suspensions, demotions and firing.
Extinction: extinction reinforcement withholds positive consequences to get the worker to
stop performing the undesirable behaviour. At the construction site, a worker who constantly
165
flouts safety regulations may have his or her appointment terminated to curtail the unsafe
practice.
Risk Assessment and Safety System
Different sites have a different nature of task and function of safety management system such
as; safety plan must be specific to potential hazard perceived to be occurred on site activities.
Risk assessments play significant role in on-going management activities and their function
to meet legislative requirements relevant to site activities. Weaver (2008) defined risk as an
uncertain event or condition that if it occurs, has a positive or negative effect on a project‘s
objective. This should include proper risk assessments, reporting systems, safety plan and
clear delegation of responsibilities, provide adequate resources and ensure that full
information is disseminated to workers and other persons exposed to risks. The involvement
of a health and safety officer in any of the risk assessment is highly empowered to change or
improve the company‘s safety performance. The health and safety officer will also ensure the
constant and effective use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) provided by the employer.
―According to the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS, 2009) a
risk assessment is a thorough look at workplace to identify situations, processes, etc. that may
cause harm to people.‖ Evaluation of the risk is carried out and a decision taken on measures
to be taken to effectively prevent or control the harm from happening. The steps are as
follows: identification of hazards, analyzing or evaluating the risk associated with that hazard
and determining appropriate ways to eliminate or control the hazard (CCOHS, 2009). Under
the management of health and safety (H&S) at Work Regulations 1999, the occupational
health risks management is placed on the employer. To meet the legal requirements as well as
improving the organisation‘s H&S performance and ultimately reduce risks and costs:
H&S policies and procedures with practical arrangements for managing occupational
health risks
Provision of employee awareness training on manual handling, control of substances
hazardous to health, noise at work and hand arm vibration
Manual handling risk assessments and safe handling techniques for manual handling
activities
Health surveillance, sickness absence management, return to work policy and stress
management strategy
Arrangements for managing subcontractors, including procedures for managing their
occupational health risks
Employers understanding their duties under the Construction (Design and
Management) Regulations (CDM 2007).
System concepts can help the employer to improve on his organisation‘s H&S planning,
policies, and procedures and to minimise risks in construction industry (CDM 2007).
Conclusion and Further Research
The purpose of this study was to highlight the employer‘s attitude towards health and safety
improvement, and to further find out the types of motivation for safety measures, and how risk
assessment methods are carried out and safety management systems applied. The review showed that
employers‘ attitude contributes to encourage employees‘ safety compliance to Occupational Health
and Safety (OHS) improvement in the construction industry. It was also mentioned that the top
management should lead the organisation and employees in the achievement of organisation safety
goals. Management should be committed towards safety and health at the workplace to
change attitude of employees. There should also be effective communications and good by
166
relationship between employers and employees on matters such as, safety talk and advice on
safety matters in order to improve safety motivation and encourage employees‘ safety
behaviour.
References Abdullah, D.N.M., Morshidi, M.N. & Lim Omar, S. (2005) A Study on the Importance of
Beahavioural-Based Safety (BBS) in making an organization a safe workplace.
Proceedings of the 8th Conference and Exhibition of National Institute of Occupational
Safety and Health (NIOSH), Malaysia, 131-140.
Teo, A.L. et al., (2005) Fostering safe work behaviour in workers at construction sites.
Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 12(4), 410-422.
Bakshi, A. et al., (2009) Organisational Justice Perceptions as Predictor of Job Satisfaction
and Organisation Commitment. Journal of International Business and Management, 4(9),
145-154.
Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS, 2009), ―Guide: British
Standard, BS 8800, BSI 2004; and Managing Safety the Systems Way: Implementing
OHSAS 18001 using BS 8800, BSI 2004‖. Available from: http://www.ccohs.ca. [18 July
2014].
Che Hassan, C.R., Basha, O.J. & Wan Hanafi, W.H. (2007) Perception of Building
Construction Workers towards Safety, Health and Environment, Journal of Engineering
Science and Technology, 2(3), 271-279.
Construction Industry Development Board (cidb) (2009) Construction Health and Safety in
South Africa: Status and Recommendations. (Online) Available at http://www.cidb.co.za
(Accessed 16 June 2014).
Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 (CDM 2007). Managing health
and safety in construction. Approved Code of Practice. Available from
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Cooper, D. (2010), Safety Leadership: Application in Construction Site. Supplemento A,
Psychologia, 32(1), A18-A23.
Elgood, J., Gilby, N. & Pearson, H. (2004) Attitudes towards health and safety: a quantitative
survey of stakeholder opinion, MORI Social Research Institute.
Fernando, Y.Z.S. & Janbi, L. (2008) The Determinant Factors of Safety Compliance at
Petrochemical Processing Area: Moderator Effects of Employees Experience and
Engineering Background, Proceedings of the 9th Asia Pacific Industrial Engineering &
Management Systems Conference,1442-1452.
Ghani, M.K., Abdul Hamid, Z., Mohd Zain, M.Z., Abdul Rahim, A.H., Mohamad Kamar,
K.A. & Abdul Rahman, M.A. (2010) Safety in Malaysian Construction: The Challenges
and Initiatives. Construction Research Institute Malaysia (CREAM), CIDB Malaysia.
Hosseinian, S.S. & Torghabeh, Z.J. (2012) Major Theories of Construction Accident
Causation Models: A Literature Review. International Journal of Advances in
Engineering & Technology. 4(2), pp. 53-66.
Ismail, F., Torrance, J.V. & Abdul Majid, M.Z. (2007) The Reflection of Management
Commitment on OSH within the Malaysia Construction Organisation. Proceeding of the
10th Conference and Exhibition of National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health
(NIOSH), Malaysia, 179-185.
Michaels, D. (2012) Outlines OSHA‘s Efforts to Shift the Safety Curve. National Safety
Council Congress and Expo. EHS TODAY (Online) at www.EHSTODAY.com.
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Association of Researchers in Construction Management, 233-241.
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168
Influence of the macro-economic environment on the
prices of the construction material in South Africa Adewumi Babalola
1 and Fanie Buys
2
Department of Quantity Surveying,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University,
Abstract:
The importance of price stability in the economic development and growth of any country
cannot be over-emphasized. This is because the success and the quality of outcome of any
construction project can depend on the price level of an economy. This study examines the
influence of the macro-economic environment on the prices of construction material in South
Africa. The methodology adopted for the study was an ex-post facto survey research, since
the researcher did not have any direct control of the independent variable and the
manifestations that have already occurred. The mathematical model for the study is p=β +
∞inf + e. The analysis of the F-statistic shows no significant relationship between the
construction material prices and the level of inflation in the economy. There is an upward
trend in the construction material prices; while the inflation rate dipped – because of the
inflation-targeting policy adopted by the South African Reserve Bank, between the range of 4
and 6 per cent per annum. It is the recommendation of this study that South Africa should
adopt policies that would bring about stable construction material prices, so as to ensure
sustainable growth and development that would reduce the present level of unemployment,
poverty and inequality in the country.
Keywords:
Construction, Inflation, Materials, South Africa
Introduction
The state of a country‘s economy affects its construction prices. A stable macro-economic
environment should lead to a stable construction price. In the 1980s and the 1990s, the South
African economy was faced with external pressures in the form of economic sanctions by the
Western economies, and the on-going internal structural inadequacies (Harmse, 2006). The
era of sanctions led to import substitution and self-sufficient policies on strategic products by
the State; and this caused huge government investment in oil from coal, and in the weapons
industries. This period of economic recession saw about 420 000 workers lose their jobs
(Roberts, 1997).
In addition, economic growth and employment recorded seven years of negative movement,
between 1981 and 1988 (Harmse, 200). Stals (1998) maintained that for the 20 years from
1972 to 1992, the inflation rate in South Africa fluctuated between 10% and 20% per annum,
with an average of 15% per annum.
Ofori (1996) stated that, the economy experienced an upswing in the 12-month period
between July 1993 and July 1994; and the real GDP grew by 3.4%. This was in contrast with
the situation in some industrialized countries, which were in recession at this period. Fraukel,
169
Smit and Sturzenegger (2006) state that, the income per capita increased rapidly during the
1960-1980 period; but then the economy experienced a downward trend that lasted for 15
years. And, it was only from mid- 1994, that the economy began its upward trend.
Literature Review
Many empirical studies have shown that the construction industry is highly dependent on a
nation‘s economy well-being. The volume of the construction outputs fluctuates in response
to changes in demand and supply conditions (Chan, 2002). The linkages between the
construction industry and the economy was confirmed by Ogunsemi and Aje (2005), that
whatever happens to the construction industry will directly or indirectly influences other
industries, and ultimately the wealth of the country. According to Rawlinson and Raftery
(1997) the construction industry price levels in the United Kingdom (UK) do respond
relatively quickly to changes in the economic conditions.
The knowledge of the movement of the overall price level is an important consideration in
setting prices in the regulated industries (Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal,
2009). Cheng and Tan (2002) state that it is important to study inflation in each country;
because it is devastating; and because inflation creates problems and causes distortions in the
functioning of an economy, thereby affecting its growth and development. Moyo and
Craffold (2010) mention that survivors of hyperinflation struggle to describe the pain.
Another important macro-economic variable that influences the construction price is the
interest rate. West and Worthington (2006) state that, interest rates and interest rate spreads
are good indicators of growth and development in a given environment. They contribute to
the property return movement; and the interest rate is an important factor in investment
decisions; since it has a link with the returns on an investment, and is also connected with the
present and future state of the economy and business conditions. Ferrer and Gonzalez (2010)
state that the interest rate is a vital factor in any sector of an economy, because it represents a
major source of uncertainty for the value of companies, because of its influence on both the
future cash flow and discount rate employed to value them. They also maintain that interest-
rate volatility and the level of financial leverage for most firms constitute additional factors
that have contributed to the increasing relevance of the corporate exposure to interest-rate
risk.
Money is a significantly important macro-economic variable for the development of any
nation, because of its relationship with inflation, which was earlier described as enemy
number one for the emancipation of countries‘ economies. According to Tse and Raftery
(2001), the issue of money supply fluctuation in relation to the changes in the construction
activities is a prime concern to the construction economist, as well as policy-makers; and
therefore, government policy is normally built based on the knowledge of how it affects
economic activities, especially the more volatile components of national output, such as
construction.
However, currency value has been a prime concern of the policy-makers because of the
influence of the foreign exchange rate to the economic development and growth. In any open
economy, the exchange rate movement has an effect on the performance of every sector.
Depreciation in the exchange rate would make the export of the domestic goods more
competitive, causing an expansion in the domestic production. However, for a country that
relies on imported inputs, a real depreciation rate would serve to increase the cost of these
170
inputs, thereby causing a contraction impact on the domestic products (Al-Rashidi and Lahiri,
2012). Frieden (1994) maintained that, the impact of the exchange rate on an economy can be
explained – depending on the degree of its integration, the cross-border trade and investment.
The national macro-economic policies influence the exchange rate; and the more the
exchange rate varies, the greater the influence on other important socio-economic actors.
Research Methodology
The study on the influence of the macro-economic environment on the prices of construction
material in South Africa involves the collation and analysis of the data on both macro-
economic variables and prices of construction material. The variables were studied in
retrospect. Furthermore, it is a study that employed an analytically-survey method by virtue
of the essentially quantitative nature of all variables and the data. This study relies heavily on
secondary sources of data for information on macro-economic variable and construction
material prices. The sampling design adopted for this study is non-probabilistic purposive
sampling method. This is necessary in order to avoid the accidental inclusion of cases that
will affect the outcome of the study, thereby affecting the reliability and validity of the
research outcome.
1.1 Model Specification
The mathematical model of this study can be derived as follows:
Price of construction material ∞ inflation rate in an economy
P ∞ Inflation rate
P = F (Inflation rate)
To solve the above mathematical function yields,
P = β + ∞Inf + e
Where
P = the price of an item of the selected construction price
β = regression constant, Inf = Inflation Rate
∞ = Inflation rate co-efficient, e =error term
1.2 Sample, Sources and Administration of data collection instrument
1.2.1 Economic Data
The historical data on inflation rate in South Africa were extracted from the published
sources of the South African Statistics using designed form.
3.2.2 Prices of construction material
The data were collected using designed form from the Bureau for Economic Research,
University of Stellenbosch, Quarterly Analysis of Building and Construction activity, First
Quarter, 2005, Vol. 20, No.1. The data cover the time series period from 1994 to 2012. The
171
dependent variable is the prices of construction material in South Africa. Ten construction
materials were chosen for analyses. These materials were selected because of their significant
and importance in construction projects in South Africa. The materials are: Paint, Flooring
material, Bricks Facing, Bitumen, Crushed Stone, Glass, Plumbing material, Ceramic Tiles,
Ceiling material and Reinforcement Steel.
1.3 Data Processing and Procedure
The data collected for the study was first put in excel form to ensure less cumbersome
processing. The software application package for the processing of the data is called
Statistical. The statistical package allows the execution of some processes such as graph and
equations, to mention but two
Findings and Discussion
Figure 4 constitutes the observed trend for material prices between 1994 and 2012. The trend
shows a general upward increase in the prices of construction material from the base year to
the end of the study period. The upward movement of the material prices can be attributed to
the unstable macro-economic environment in South Africa. This is an indication of what is
happening in the execution of the construction projects in South Africa – with the high cost of
materials causing high construction costs and construction-cost overruns. The high cost of the
materials can also be as a result the variability in the exchange rate of the Rand to the Dollar.
There is a devaluation of the Rand vis-a-vis the Dollar because of the prevailing macro-
economic environment in South Africa. The graphs in Figure 4 show the relationship between
construction material prices and inflation. There are ten materials altogether. From the
regression analysis, the p–value and the equation models, there is no relationship between the
construction materials and the rate of inflation in the economy. This is contrary to the theory
of inflation, which states that when the inflation rate is low, the price level in an economy
would also be low. The entire graphs that shows the trend is available from the authors.
172
Figure 4: Observed trend for material prices between 1994 and 2012
Conclusion and Further Research
From the study, it may be observed that the macro-economic environment in South Africa
shows stable negative trend on the graph. This observation affects the growth and
development of the country. The situation has also generated the too-high cost of construction
material prices, thereby adding a multiplier effect to the high cost of construction projects,
and then project-cost overruns. The monetary and fiscal policies are not performing
adequately to ensure price stability. The inflation target of the Reserve Bank of South Africa
could not curb the high price of construction materials, although is in the range of 4 to 6% per
annum.
Therefore, for the aforementioned reasons, it is the recommendation of this study that South
Africa government should come up with policies that would bring about low construction
material prices, because of the importance of the construction industry in economic
development.
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Fraukel, J., Smit, B. & Sturzenegger, F. (2006). South African macro-economic challenges
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Frieden, J.A. (1994). Exchange rate politics: Contemporary lessons from American history.
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Ogunsemi, D.R. & Aje, J.A. (2005). The use of cash-flow forecast and effects on the
abandonment of projects in Nigeria. Journal of Quantity Surveyors, 5(7), 20-28.
Rawlinson, S. & Raftery, J. (1997). Price Stability and the business cycle: UK construction
bidding patterns 1970-91. Construction Management and Economics, 15, 5-18
Roberts, S. (1997). Monetary policy within macro-economic policy: An appraisal in the
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Tse, R.Y.C. & Raftery, J. (2001). The effects of money supply on construction flows.
Construction Management and Economics, 19(1), 9-17.
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174
Assessing contractors’ cash flow forecasting process
capabilities Muhammad Abdullahi, Yahaya M Ibrahim, Ahmed D Ibrahim and Hassan A Ahmadu
Department of Quantity Surveying,
Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Nigeria,
Abstract:
Inadequate cash resources resulting from poor cash flows have been among the fundamental
cause of construction project failures. To address this situation, complex and advanced cash
flow forecasting (CFF) tools and techniques are globally used for forecasting construction
cash flows, especially in large projects where huge sums of monies are invested. However,
effective cash flow forecasting process can only be developed by the systematic improvement
of the individual components of a cash flow forecasting system which assesses the specific
strengths and weaknesses of the process. In Nigeria studies have reported CFF practice to be
at an infancy stage with high need for improvement. However, these assessments were not
based on a systematic approach that examines the capabilities of the various components of a
CFF process thereby identifying areas in critical need for improvement. To address this
problem, this study proposes a systematic approach to assessing CFF capabilities of
construction firms using Best Practices in CFF developed by Royal Institute of Chartered
Surveyors (RICS).Through a self-administered questionnaire survey, a total number of 133
questionnaires were administered amongst contracting organisations involved in both
building and civil engineering works in Nigeria. The key best practices were ranked based on
arithmetic mean value scores and averages were also determined for each of the four
components assessed (Knowledge and understanding CFF concepts and principles, Practical
application, Practical considerations, and other Managerial issues).Results of the study
reveals that the industry is currently at a low capability level in terms of cash flow prediction
and analysis. The construction industry has high capability of understanding and the practical
application of the key CFF best practices, but a weak/low advisory and management
capabilities. The results of this study could serve as a basis for the strategic planning of
improvement in Cash Flow Forecasting process by contractors in Nigeria.
Keywords:
Construction, Cash flow, Forecasting, Practice
Introduction
Effective management of Construction Project Cash Flows (CPCFs) has been a fundamental
concern to construction project managers whose prior goals are to deliver projects on time,
within budget and to the required quality standards. Project Managers are always required to
accurately forecast project cash flows to ensure stable financial position at all times (Harris
and McCaffer, 2005) and eliminate the risk of project failure which has been a threat to so
many construction projects (Odeyinka and Lowe, 2001). The construction industry has been
reported to have recorded the highest number of insolvencies than any other sector of the
economy. For example, 17.5% cases of bankruptcies were reported in the UK alone in 1989
(Kaka, 1999). These insolvencies were mostly attributed to poor financial management
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practices which are usually due to inadequate attention to cash flow issues at project and
corporate levels.
At the construction project level, cash flow forecasting fundamentally deals with the
prediction of the total cash-in and cash-out in the form of income and expenditure to the
contractor within the contract period. Accurate cash flow forecast is essential at both the
tendering and construction stages for all contractors (Kenley, 2003). It provides contractors
with information regarding the amount of capital required, the amount of interest needed to
support overdrafts and the evaluation of different tendering strategies (Harris and McCaffer,
2005). Similarly, as construction progresses, accurate forecasts could serve as a cost control
tool (Odeyinka and Lowe, 2001). The traditional method of forecasting cash flow according
to Harris and McCaffer (2005) entails the calculation of actual quantities for each time
interval according to progress schedules and then multiplying them by the estimated unit
costs. However, because of the tedious and time consuming nature of the aforementioned
approach, the need for faster and simpler techniques in Cash Flow Forecasting (CFF) became
necessary and therefore alternative modeling techniques ranging from mathematical,
statistical to the application of artificial intelligence were employed to develop CFF models.
Majority of earlier models were based on the use of standard S-Curves to forecast project
expenditure flow (Hardy, 1970; Balkau, 1975; Bromilow and Henderson, 1977; Hudson,
1978; Allsop, 1980; Berney and Howes, 1982; Singh and Phua, 1984; Oliver, 1984; Kenley
and Wilson, 1986; Miskawi, 1989; Khosrowshahi, 1991). Other models include Kenley and
Wilson (1986), Kaka and Price (1991, 1993) developing the logit models based on
idiographic methodology; Lowe et al. (1993) applying Expert Systems; Kaka and
Khosrowshahi (1996) investigating the impact of some procurement approaches on
contractors‘ cash flow. More recently, researchers have explored the use of Artificial Neural
Network (Bousssabaine and Kaka, 1998; Boussabaine et al., 1999) approach, fuzzy set theory
techniques (Bousssabaine and Elhag, 1999), combinatorial optimization model using colony
search capabilities (Abdel-Raheem et al., 2013), monte-carlo simulation and Analytical
Hierrachical Process (AHP) by Zeyed and Liu (2014) and the use of other CFF software.
Furthermore, Khosrowshahi (2000) reported the development of the Advanced S-Curve
(TASC); a software that aids cash flow forecasting. Other software developed includes
FINCASH (developed in Australia) and Cybercube (developed in the UK).
While all these cash flow forecasting techniques and tools are recognised in literature and
practice, studies in Nigeria reported CFF practice to be at an infant stage not done based on
the methodologies recommended globally (Abdulrazaq et al., 2012). According to
Abdulrazaq et al. (2012), the practice even though formally done by large construction
companies is still not a matured practice, contractors who engage in the practice as a
company policy do not adhere strictly to the global best practices of CFF in literature and
even the industry. However, these assessments (Abdulrazaq et al., 2012) were not based on a
systematic approach that examines the specific components of a CFF process thereby
identifying areas of strengths and weaknesses in practice by the contractors. In order to
address this shortcoming, this research work investigates the current state of the industry in
the practice using a systematic approach. The specific components of an effective CFF
process (such as; knowledge and understanding of CFF principles and techniques; practical
application of the techniques and other practical considerations) were systematically assessed
and specific areas of strengths and weaknesses were identified
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Best Practices in Cash Flow Forecasting Process
The Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors‘ CFF Practice guidance note (2012) provides best
practice guidance on cash flow forecasting to project and cost managers in all world regions.
The document summarises what cash flow forecasting is, how to produce a useful forecast
and how to use the forecast to assess progress on site, as well as several other issues. The
main aim of the guide is to assist both employers and contractors to analyse actual
expenditure against forecast expenditure in a uniform approach and to ensure that consistent
practice is delivered in a professional manner that is in line with the globally recognised
guidance. Guidance is given based on the main forms of contract and main procurement
routes, under the following headings which corresponds to RICS Assessment of Professional
Competence (APC) methodology:
General principles (Level 1: Knowing).
Practical application (Level 2: Doing).
Practical considerations (Level 3: Doing/ Advising).
Table 1 presents the list of key best practices as outlined by RICS CFF Practice guidance note
(2012).
Table 1: RICS Key Best Practices (KPBs) in cash flow forecasting
General Principles
Understanding of the uses and purposes of CFF
Awareness of the influence of different valuation methods on CFF
Knowledge of influence of cash flow on business failure
Understanding of legislative requirements on CFF
Knowledge of CFF curves and formulae
Knowledge of advance cash flow forecasting tools
Practical Application
Deciding appropriate approach Providing risk allowance
Taking brief from employer Providing risk allowance for provisional sums
Preparing program of works Adding cost centres
Ascertaining basis of forecast Adjusting materials on and off site
Adjusting forecast for cyclical events Seeking specialist advice for CFF of specialist works
Adjusting schedule for holiday Adjusting forecast to reflect progress on site
Incorporating retention percentage Managing the effects of delays on CF
Adjusting cash flow forecast to extend to
rectification period
Use of spread sheet for CFF
Analysing delays for certification period Using value approach to predict cash flows
Including payment delays in forecast Using cost approach to predict cash flow
Considering sectional completion/partial
possession
using detailed approach to predict cash flows
Adjusting currency difference Using short-cut approach to predict cash flows
Providing risk allowance for variation Using Artificial intelligence to predict cash flows
Practical Considerations
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Representing forecast in graphical form
Analysing reasons for variances
Discussing variances with the employer
Analyzing actual payment against forecast
Checklisting CF risks
forecasting the effects of claim on CFF
considering the effects of re-sequencing and work acceleration
Advising on the effects of local taxation
Considering effects of alternative procurement routes
Ensuring data richness and information accuracy
Research Methodology
To achieve the objectives set for this study, a combination of research techniques was used.
The first stage of the study involved a review of literature, basically to identify the variables
(best practices in cash flow forecasting) used in developing the assessment criteria for
assessing firms‘ capabilities. The second stage involved a questionnaire survey. The
questionnaire survey was carried out to assess the CFF capabilities of the different group of
contractors selected for the study, particularly on the extent to which the CFF best practices
are applied in their organisations. The complete questionnaire comprised three sections:
questions about respondents‘ background; questions about some key relevant organisational
characteristics; and questions on cash flow forecasting practices. The target respondents who
were construction professionals with vast experience in construction finance responded to the
questionnaires by rating the extent of usage/application of the key best practices in CFF using
a Likert scale of 0-5 where; 0 indicates ―no usage/application‖, 1 ―little usage/application‖, 2
―some usage/application‖, 3 ―moderate level of usage/application‖, 4 ―High level of
usage/application‖ and 5 ―Highest level of usage/application‖.
A total of number of 133 firms were selected and administered questionnaires using
purposive sampling technique. The sample selection was based on the assumption that all the
firms considered in the sample frame consider CFF very important and engage qualified
personnel to perform the duty. The purposive sampling method was adopted to ensure that
only those firms that practice cash flow forecasting were involved in the survey. Therefore,
only firms that are capable of providing the required information needed in the study were
contacted. A total number of 86 usable responses representing 65% response rate were used
for analysis. The key best practices were ranked based on arithmetic mean value scores and
averages were also determined for each of the four components assessed(Knowledge and
understanding CFF concepts and principles, Practical application, Practical considerations,
and other Managerial issues).
Findings and Discussion
Assessment Criteria
Based on the review of literature carried out, assessment criteria was developed and
categorised into four distinct components which are indicators of best practices in CFF. The
four CFF process areas / components are:
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The understanding and knowledge of CFF principles and process (knowing).
Practical application of the concepts and principles into live projects (doing).
Practical considerations of the practices (Advising).
Management related issues.
These first three components were direct extracts from the Royal Institute of Chartered
Surveyors (RICS) Professional Guidance Note (2002) while the management related issues
were identified from literature. The guidance note provides best practices on cash flow
forecasting for project and cost managers all over the world and is based on the RICS
assessment of professional competence approach. The main purpose of the guide is to ensure
that consistent practice is delivered in a professional manner that is in line with
internationally recognised guidance. The guide sets a framework for best practice, subject to
specific local legislative requirements and local market specifics. Respondents were
presented with a long list of The CFF capabilities of the contractors surveyed and were
therefore assessed based on these criteria.
However, each criterion (process area/component) has sub-criteria which provide more
details on the requirement of the main criterion (components). The sub-criteria are comprised
of the best practices that describe what CFF is, how to produce a good cash flow forecast and
then how to use the forecast to assess progress on site and other issues. Table 1 presents the
key indicators of best practices in CFF.
Table 2: CFF Management best practices applied by the organisations
Key Practices Overall
Mean Rank
Large
Firm's
Mean Rank
Medium
Firm's
Mean Rank
Small
Firm's
Mean Rank
Management's commitment 2.33 1 4.14 1 1.86 2 0.97 2
Highly trained staff 2.15 2 3.57 4 1.81 3 1.09 1
Organisational Policy 1.99 3 3.79 3 2.03 1 0.17 3
Evaluation and review of CFF process 1.46 4 3.93 2 0.44 5 0.00 5
Verify whether forecasts are based on
Procedures
1.39 5 2.64 5 1.47 4 0.06 4
Assessing the Knowledge and Understanding of CFF principles and concepts-knowing
According to RICS CFF guide (2002), the first step to a successful management of project
cash flow begins with a clear and good understanding of the basic principles and concepts of
CFF. In line with that, respondents were asked to examine the extent to which some key basic
concepts of CFF are understood in their organisations. Six (6) basic concepts were assessed
and the results produced overall mean values ranging from 4.71 to 1.88. As depicted in Table
3, the three basic principles well understood by the contractors are; ‗uses and purposes of
CFF‘ (overall mean= 4.71), ‗influence of cash flow on business failure‘ (overall mean= 4.7),
and ‗legislative requirements‘ (overall mean= 3.46). The mean values for these concepts (key
best practices) were higher than the other three best practices. These three most applicable
practices are the first three pre-requisite principles every organisation practicing CFF is
expected to understand as recommended by the RICS Practice guide (2003). ‗Awareness of
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the influence of different valuation methods‘ was ranked 4th overall, although ranked 3rd by
both medium and large firms.
Meanwhile, ‗Knowledge of CFF Curves and formulae‘ was ranked 4th with a high mean
score of 3.93 by large firms compared to the medium and small firms. Curves and formulae
are often used early in the design stage to give employers a guide as to the predicted cash
flow forecast. This is usually done before the contractor is being appointed, so as to assist the
employer with funding arrangement and agreements and also to assist in the procurement and
contract choice (Harris and McCaffer, 2005). The low mean value score (1.97) and ranking
(4th) on small size firms is not unexpected, this is because they handle simple projects with
less complexities, lower contract sum and duration. And therefore the need for earlier
predictions is usually unnecessary.
However, ‗Knowledge of advance CFF tools‘ was ranked at the bottom of the list by all the
three (3) categories of firms. This is also not unexpected, given that the application of these
tools is still not very common even in the UK construction industry where some of these tools
were developed (Odeyinka et al., 2003).
Table 3: Knowing: Understanding and knowledge of the principles of Cash flow forecasting
Key Practices Overall
Mean Rank
Large
Firm's
Mean
Rank
Medium
Firm's
Mean
Rank
Small
Firm's
Mean
Rank
Understanding of the uses and
purposes of CFF
4.71 1 4.71 1 5.00 1 4.43 1
Influence of cash flow on business
failure
4.70 2 4.43 3 5.00 1 4.69 2
Legislative requirements on CFF 3.46 3 4.57 2 3.83 2 1.97 4
Awareness of the influence of
different valuation methods on CFF
3.12 4 3.50 5 3.56 3 2.31 3
Knowledge of CFF curves and
formulae
2.67 5 3.93 4 2.11 5 1.97 4
Knowledge of advance CFF tools 1.88 6 2.57 6 2.64 4 0.43 5
Doing: Practical Application of CFF best practices
This section assesses the practical application of the best practices in preparing cash flow
forecasts. Table 4 depicts contractors‘ opinion regarding the extent of usage or application of
some best practices in preparing CFF. The results revealed mean values of 26 best practices
ranging from 5.00 to 0.00. Table 7 shows that 4 best practices scored an average score of
5.00, 7 practices had mean values above 4.00, 5 practices had mean scores between 3.0 and
4.0, while the remaining 9 practices scored mean values between 2.0 and 0.00. Overall, the
top 10 most applicable CFF best practices in Nigeria are; ―Preparing program of works‖,
―Using detailed approach to predict cash flows‖, ―Incorporating retention percentage‖,
―Adjusting currency difference‖, ―Using value approach to predict cash flows‖, ―Ascertaining
basis of forecast‖, ―Including payment delays in forecasts‖ ―Adjusting materials on and off
site‖, ―Adjusting forecast to reflect progress on site‖, and the ―Use of spread sheet for CFF‖.
Of these top ten best practices, the first four have the highest mean value score of 5.00 for all
the categories of firm and were ranked 1st . This clearly shows that all the firms do apply
these practices most often in their CFF process irrespective of what category they belong to.
And this should improve the accuracy of forecast they produce. Chen et al (2005) reported
180
that the accuracy of cost predictions hinges on the adequate inclusion of payment lags,
components (materials/labour/plant costs), and frequency of payment in cost schedule
integrated (CSI) models used to prepare the forecasts.
Table 4: Practical Application of CFF principles and concepts
Key Practices Overall
Mean Rank
Large
Firm's
Mean
Medium
Firm's
Mean
Small
Firm's
Mean
Preparing program of works 5.00 1 5.00 5.00 5.00
Using detailed approach to predict cash
flows
5.00 1 5.00 5.00 5.00
Incorporating retention percentage 5.00 1 5.00 5.00 5.00
Adjusting currency difference 5.00 1 5.00 5.00 5.00
Using value approach to predict cash flows 4.92 2 4.50 5.00 5.00
Ascertaining basis of forecast 4.79 3 4.93 4.89 4.63
Including payment delays in forecast 4.76 4 3.50 5.00 5.00
Adjusting materials on and off site 4.76 4 5.00 4.89 4.51
Adjusting forecast to reflect progress on
site
4.57 5 5.00 4.64 4.31
Use of spread sheet for CFF 4.27 6 0.57 5.00 5.00
Considering sectional completion/partial
possession
4.08 7 4.86 4.69 3.11
Seeking specialist advice for CFF of
specialist works
3.72 8 3.86 4.64 2.71
Analysing delays for certification period 3.59 9 4.14 3.75 3.20
Managing the effects of delay 3.48 10 4.00 3.69 3.03
Adjusting schedule for holiday 3.13 11 5.00 4.42 1.03
Deciding appropriate approach 3.09 12 4.64 2.97 2.54
Providing risk allowance for provisional
sums
2.83 13 0.64 3.64 2.83
Adjusting for cyclical events 2.60 14 5.00 4.06 0.09
Adding cost centres 2.21 15 1.00 2.67 2.20
Adjusting cash flow forecast to extend to
rectification period
1.85 16 5.00 1.56 0.94
Providing risk allowance for variation 1.65 17 2.93 1.39 1.46
Providing risk allowance 1.37 18 2.43 1.28 1.03
Using cost approach to predict cash flow 0.98 19 0.57 1.11 1.03
Using short-cut approach to predict cash
flows
0.81 20 0.36 1.03 0.69
Taking brief from employer 0.78 21 2.07 1.06 0.00
Using Artificial intelligence to predict cash
flows
0.00 22 0.00 0.00 0.00
Doing/Advising: Practical Considerations of CFF best practices
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This section assesses the practical considerations to be made when producing and analysing
cash flows. The questionnaire required respondents to rate the extent to which some practical
considerations are made when managing their project cash flow forecasts. The most
applicable best practice overall in the industry is ―Analyzing actual payment against forecast
(4.47)‖, followed by ―Representing forecast in graphical form (4.06)‖, and then ―Ensuring
data richness and information accuracy (3.94)‖. Generally these best practices were scored
higher by the large firms compared to the medium and small firms. The large firms do
practically consider five (5) of the best practices in their cash flow forecasting process while
only three out of the 10 practical considerations were considered by the medium and small
firms.
The three (3) least scored practices were; ―Considering effects of alternative procurement
routes (0.42)‖, ―considering the effects of re-sequencing and work acceleration (0.20)‖, and
―Discussing variances with the employer (0.10)‖. These best practices having a mean score of
less than 1.00 implies that they are not applied entirely in the industry. The non-application of
these practices by the small firms most especially could be due to the nature of projects they
undertake, usually small and medium sized projects with short contract durations. However,
despite the conclusion made by Kaka and Price (1993) that different procurement routes have
different cash flow profiles and must be treated differently, the results shows that the small
and medium scale contractors do not take that into consideration. Also, even the large
contractors who were shown to consider it do that at a very low rate. Surprisingly also, best
practices such as ―Analysing reasons for variances‖, ―Advising on the effects of local
taxation‖, ―forecasting the effects of claim on CFF‖, ―Checklisting CF risks‖, which could
have tremendous effects on the accuracy of forecast were scored very low, indicating ―low
level of application‖ by the contractors. This is likely due to the fear of delays in decision
making and subsequent correspondences from the employer which could result from
consultations and discussions with them.
Table 5: Practical Considerations
Key Practices Overall
Mean Rank
Large
Firm's
Mean
Medium
Firm's
Mean
Small
Firm's
Mean
Analyzing actual payment against forecast 4.47 1 5.00 4.56 4.14
Representing forecast in graphical form 4.06 2 5.00 3.89 3.83
Ensuring data richness and information
accuracy
3.94 3 5.00 3.94 3.51
Analysing reasons for variances 1.28 4 4.29 0.92 0.43
Advising on the effects of local taxation 1.12 5 5.00 0.50 0.20
Forecasting the effects of claim on CFF 0.70 6 1.00 0.78 0.51
Checklisting CF risks 0.64 7 1.71 0.53 0.29
Considering effects of alternative procurement
routes
0.42 8 1.21 0.39 0.14
Considering the effects of re-sequencing and
work acceleration
0.20 9 0.00 0.33 0.14
Discussing variances with the employer 0.10 10 0.64 0.00 0.00
Overall CFF Capabilities of Nigeria Contractors
The average CFF process capabilities of Nigerian construction firms are shown on Tables 6
and 7.
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Large firms‘ capability: The large firms have an overall average group mean of 3.48
implying that the practice is at a high level of application with high capability. Firms
under this group have high understanding and knowledge (knowing) of the basic concepts
and principles of CFF (overall mean= 3.95); moderate level of practical application
(Doing) of the concepts and principles (Overall mean= 3.46), a low level of applying
those practical considerations (Doing /Advising) into their forecasting process (Overall
mean= 2.89). An overall mean value of 3.61 for management related issues also depicts a
high level of application of managerial practices. Therefore, the results clearly shows that
large firms have higher capabilities in the areas of ―Knowing‖ and ―Management of CFF
process‖ while moderate and weak capabilities in the areas of Practical application
(Doing) and Practical considerations (Doing/Advising) respectively.
Medium firms‘ capability: the medium firms have an overall group average of 2.58 lower
than that of the large firms. This means that the medium sized firms are also at a low level
of CFF practice with low capability. Firms under this group have their relative strengths
in the areas of ―Knowing and Doing‖ while weak in the ―Advisory and Management‖
aspect of the process. However, because the rating scale ranges from 0 to 5, this means
than the contractors under this group still have substantial opportunity to improve their
capabilities, especially in the areas of Doing/advising (overall mean= 1.58) and managing
(Overall mean= 1.52) where capabilities are extremely low.
Small firms‘ capability: the small firms with overall mean value of 1.82 have a very low
CFF Capabilities. They have low capabilities in the areas of Knowing and Doing; very
low capabilities in Doing/Advising; and completely incapable in the management
component of the process. The small firms do not apply any of the management best
practices in their CFF process. This could possibly be the simple reason for the poor
accuracy in their cash flow forecasts. A good management setting usually have planning,
monitoring and controlling systems which collectively ensure effectiveness and
efficiency. Therefore, the small firms need to seriously work towards achieving
tremendous improvements in their management capabilities by applying those
management related key practices that will improve the overall capability of their CFF
process.
Industry Capability: The entire industry based on the sample studied having a mean value
of 2.55 has low CFF capability. The industry is relatively moderate in the areas of
knowing and doing, while very weak in the other two process areas; Doing/advising and
management/controlling. High level of improvement is needed in all the components to
achieve higher accuracies in cash flow forecasting.
Table 6: Overall capabilities of the various components of a Cash flow forecasting Process
CFF Process Areas Firms Overall Mean
Large Medium Small
Knowing 3.95 3.69 2.63 3.42
Doing 3.46 3.51 2.86 3.24
Doing/Advising 2.89 1.58 1.32 1.69
Managing 3.61 1.52 0.46 1.86
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Table 7: Overall Cash flow forecasting capabilities of the firms
Cash flow forecasting capabilities
Large
Firms'
overall
Mean
Medium
Firms'
overall
Mean
Small
Firms'
overall
Mean
Industry
Overall
Mean
3.48 2.58 1.82 2.55
Conclusion and Further Research
The aim of this study was to assess the Cash flow Forecasting Capabilities (CFF) of Nigerian
contractors, with sole view of identifying the potential strengths and weaknesses in their CFF
processes thereby recommending possible areas in need of improvement. This aim was
achieved through some specific objectives. The first objective was to identify key best
practices (KBPs) in cash flow forecasting and was achieved through the comprehensive
review of past literature with information drawn from various sources including academic
and industry publications. Information collected was then critically analysed to establish the
KBPs used in the study. A long list of forty seven (47) best practices recommended by
practitioners and professionals in the construction industry was elicited. The practice guide
outlined best practices based on the three major components of the RICS assessment of
professional competence (knowing, Doing, and advising) which directly describes the process
of CFF. In addition five (5) other management related issues were further identified from
literature. These key best practices formed the basis of the assessment by serving as the
criteria used for assessing contractors‘ capabilities.
The second objective was achieved via self-administered survey conducted among the
different categories of contractors as listed by businesslist.com a directory for registered
construction firms in Nigeria. The main object of the survey was to carry out the assessment
of the CFF capabilities of contractors in Nigeria based on their level of knowledge and
understanding of the CFF process (Knowing); Practical application of basic principles of CFF
(Doing); other practical considerations (Advising); and the overall management strategies
adopted by the contractors to manage the entire CFF process of their projects. Firstly, the
survey results indicated that CFF in Nigeria construction industry is ineffective and not
practiced as recommended in literature.
The industry is at a low capability level with high need for improvement. It revealed that
large and medium sized firms have higher CFF capabilities, especially when compared with
the small firms which have low capabilities in virtually all the key components of CFF
process. Secondly, the strong and weak areas of practice by the firms were determined from
the assessment results. More specifically, the results revealed a high level of application of
the BPs in the areas of Knowing (Knowledge and understanding of CFF principles) and
Doing (the practical application of CFF principles), but a very weak Advisory (practical
considerations) and management capabilities. Furthermore, the large firms have high
capabilities in knowing, doing and controlling, but low/weak in the advisory aspect of the
process Medium firms have their strong holds in knowing and doing but need some
tremendous improvement in the advisory and management areas. The small firms have a very
poor CFF process. The practice in these firms needs improvement in virtually all its
components, especially in the management aspect which does not exist and the advisory areas
which is also at a very low level. Little effort would improve the knowing and doing areas.
184
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186
Causes and effects of disputes on construction projects in
Johannesburg, South Africa L Maseko, CO Aigbavboa, and WD Thwala
Department of Construction Management & Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
Construction disputes happen fairly often, they are a reality on every construction project and
could happen at any point in time during the design or construction phase of the project. This
paper assesses the causes and effects of construction project disputes and thier consequential
effects in the Johannesburg –construction industry. The primary data was collected through a
well-structured questionnaire, which was distributed to construction professionals, who
included: architects, quantity surveyors, civil engineers, construction mangers and project
managers. Out of the 55 questionnaires sent out, 49 were received back ,representing a 89%
response rate. Data received from the questionnaires was analysed using descriptive statistics
procedures. Findings from the study reveal that design errors, poor briefing by the client,
poor management, failure to follow conditions of contract and delay in progress payments are
the major causes of disputes on construction projects. The study also revealed that litigation,
cost overruns, time overruns, loss of profit and loss of proffesional reputation are major
effects of construction disputes.
Keywords:
Construction, Disputes, Johannesburg, South Africa
Introduction
Construction industry is one of the mainstays of a country‘s economic progress, it may in fact
be not wrong to state that the state of a country‘s construction sector can be used as a
barometer to gauge that country‘s economic performance. Different people may hold
different views, but when a country‘s economic statistics are heading downwards, the
government‘s ―stimulus package‖ for the economy usually comprises substantial allocation
for the construction industry. However, it is also true to say that the construction industry is a
fertile source of disputes (Kheng, 2003).
Dispute in construction industry always occur and can be attested by many court cases
reported in court proceedings, various law journals and law reports. Therefore, construction
disputes can have serious implication in construction project. However, the project may
suffer cost and time overrun, the owner may suffer significant loss and profit and worst still
the project may be abandoned or failed. This is because construction is a complex process
involving of many activities, myriads of individual, different company or firms, different
size, part of country with different skills and capabilities and always subject to changing
environment (Asniah, 2007).
In every industry where people have to work together and cooperate there is a possibility for
disputes to arise, and construction industry is not an exception. Often there is a lack of
187
understanding about the reasons behind the disputes, but to avoid disputes from occurring and
resolving them if they occur, it is vital to understand the causes of disputes (Love et al.,
2006).
Literature Review: Construction Project Disputes – causes and effects
The construction industry has the unenviable reputation of being highly adversarial, and as a
result of this, is paradoxically a leader in both dispute occurrences and dispute resolution
systems (Keil, 1999). In the construction industry, disputes can be damaging and expensive,
but can also seem inevitable. There is no universal definition of dispute. However for the
purpose of this research, the dispute is defined as a problem or disagreement between the
parties that cannot be resolved by on-site project managers. However, according to Rarooqui
& Azhar (2014), there are four major categories of dispute causation: construction related
causes of disputes, financial/economical causes of disputes, management causes of disputes
and contract related causes of disputes. In a similar vein, Campbell (1997) also reveals that,
construction disputes generally occur due to the following: adversarial nature of contracts;
Poor communication between the parties; Ineffective communication on site; the inability to
understand terms of contract and expectations of the parties. According to Kwakye (1997),
disputes may arise on a project for a number of reasons, some well-known ones include:
shortcomings, omissions and error in contract documentation giving rise to ambiguities in
contract requirements; Delays in the supply of general construction information; and late
issue of variation orders for some section of the works.
Construction disputes, when not resolved in a timely manner, become very expensive – in
terms of finances, personnel, time, and opportunity costs. The visible expenses (e.g.,
attorneys, expert witnesses, the dispute resolution process itself) alone are significant. The
less visible costs (e.g., company resources assigned to the dispute, lost business
opportunities) and the intangible costs (e.g., damage to business relationships, potential value
lost due to inefficient dispute resolution) are also considerable, although difficult or
impossible to quantify (Farooqui & Azhar, 2014). As a result of issues arising in projects,
conflict and disputes may occur, which can lead to the disruption of construction schedules,
increased project costs, and even adversely influence relationships between project
participants (Yiu & Cheung, 2004). If a dispute is not resolved promptly; it may escalate, and
ultimately require litigation proceedings, which can be extremely costly for the parties
concerned (Cheung et al., 2004). Literature identified the following to be the effects of
disputes in construction disputes; Additional expenses in managerial and administration,
litigation, loss of company reputation, loss of profitability, loss of business viability, time
overruns, cost overruns, loss of professional reputation, loss of respect between parties,
reworks, and relocation cost.
Research Methodology
The quantitative approach was adopted in the study. Burns and Grove (1993) define
quantitative research as a formal, objective, systematic process to describe and test
relationships and examine causes and effects interactions among variables. However, Polit
and Hungler (1993) states that a quantitative research is a survey to obtain information from a
sample of people by means of self-report, that is, the people respond to a sequence of
questions posed to them by the researcher. Therefore, in this study the information was
collected through a well-structured questionnaire distributed to the respondents by the
researcher.
188
A descriptive survey was selected because it gives an account of the characteristics, for
example behaviour, opinions, abilities, beliefs and knowledge of a particular individual,
situation or group. This method was chosen to meet the objectives of this study, namely to
identifying the causes of disputes in the South African construction industry and the effects of
disputes, further, identifying the measurers of resolving these disputes in construction
projects. The target population in this study were Architects, Quantity Surveyors, civil
engineers, construction managers, project managers, and planners who are working in project
around Johannesburg, South Africa. Furthermore, out of the 55 questionnaires sent out, 55
were received back which represent 100% response rate and only 49 (89%) were usable,
which formed the basis of this paper.
Mean Item Score (MIS)
A five point Likert scale was used to determine the causes, effects and methods of
minimising construction in Johannesburg, with regards to the identified factors from the
reviewed literature. The adopted scale was as follows;
1. = Strongly disagree
2. = Disagree
3. = Neutral
4. = Agree
5. = Strongly agree
The other scale used was as follows;
1. = Extremely unlikely
2. = Unlikely
3. = Neutral
4. = likely
5. = Extremely likely
The five-point scale was transformed to mean item score (MIS) for each of the factors of
causes, effects and methods of resolving disputes as assessed by the respondents. The indices
were then used to determine the rank of each item. The ranking made it possible to cross
reference the relative importance of the items as perceived by the respondents. This method
was used to analyse the data collected from the questionnaires survey.
The addition of the relative mean item score (MIS) was calculated from the total of all
weighted responses and then relating it to the total responses on a particular aspect. This was
based on the principle that respondents‘ scores on all the selected criteria, considered
together, are the empirically determined indices of relative importance. The index of MIS of a
particular factor is the sum of the respondents‘ actual scores (on the 5-point scale) given by
all the respondents‘ as a proportion of the sum of all maximum possible scores on the 5-point
scale that all the respondents could give to that criterion. A weighting was assigned to each
response ranging from one to five for the responses of ‗strongly disagree‘ to ‗strongly agree‘
and ‗Extremely unlikely‘ to ‗Extremely likely‘. This is expressed mathematically below. The
mean item score (MIS) was calculated for each item as follows;
MIS= 1n1 + 2n2 + 3n3 +4n4+5n5 …………………………………… Equation 1.0
∑N
189
Where;
n1 = Number of respondents for extremely unlikely or strongly disagree
n2 = Number of respondents for unlikely of disagree;
n3 = Number of respondents for neutral;
n4 = Number of respondents for likely or agree;
n5 = Number of respondents for extremely likely or strongly agree;
N = Total number of respondents.
Findings and Discussion
Findings from the 49 usable questionnaires reveal that 69.4% of the respondents were male
and 30.6% were female, Findings relating to the respondents age group reveal that 29% of the
respondents were in the age group of 20-25years old, 29% of the respondents were in the age
group 26-30 years old, 14% were in the age group 31-35 years old, 10% were in the age
group 36-40 years old, 6% were in the 41-45 years old age group, and 12% of the
respondents were from the age group of 55 and above. Furthermore, the respondents‘
ethnicity shows that 57% of the respondents were black, 35% were white, 2% of the
respondents were coloured and 6% were either Indian or Asian. Moreover, the data reveal
that the professional qualification of the respondents were (37% ) quantity surveyors, (27% )
project managers, (18%) were project planners, mechanical engineers, industrial engineers
and mining engineers, 12% civil engineers, (4%) were construction managers and (2%)
were architects.
Nevertheless it showed the working experience of the respondents, it reveals that 47% had
experience that ranged from 1-5 years, 29% had experience in the range 6-10 years, 8% had
experience that ranged between 11-15 years, 4% had experience that ranged between 16-20
years and 12% had 20 years or more experience in the industry. The data also shows the
educational qualifications of the respondents and it reveal that 47% of the respondents had
diplomas, 41% had B-degree, 8% had a M-degree, 2% had a D-degree and 2% had
certificates. Furthermore, the data revealed the respondents current employers and it show
that 67% of the respondents were working for the contractors, 14% were employed by the
consultants, 10% were employees of the client, 8% were employed at the government
departments, and none of the respondents were from other of various government ministries
and departments, and none of the respondents were employed at a different institution other
than the mentioned ones.
Client related causes of disputes in construction projects
The results reveal the respondents ranking of aspects that cause disputes in construction
projects. It reveals that poor communication between team members was raked first with the
mean score of 3.94 ;poor management was ranked second with the mean score of
3.84;disagreements/ambiguities in contract documents was ranked third with a mean score of
3.80 and failure to respond in timely manner was ranked fourth with a mean score of 3.80
(Table 1). The results discloses that poor supervision was ranked the seventh with a mean
score of 3.67; reluctant to check for constructability was ranked eightieth with a mean score
of 3.47. Moreover, reluctant to check for completeness on construction documents was
ranked the twelfth with a mean score of 3.37 and failure to appoint a project manager was
ranked the thirteenth with a mean score of 3.02.
190
Table 1: Client related causes of disputes
Causes of Disputes MIS Rank
Poor communication between team members. 3.94 1
Poor management 3.84 2
Disagreements/ambiguities in contract documents. 3.80 3
Failure to respond in timely manner. 3.80 4
Poor coordination efforts on the part of the project 3.75 5
Reluctant to check for clarity on construction documents 3.69 6
Poor Supervision 3.67 7
Reluctant to check for constructability 3.47 8
Lowest price mentality in engagement of contractors and designers. 3.47 9
The lack of team spirit among the participants. 3.45 10
Inadequate tracking system for request of information. 3.44 11
Reluctant to check for completeness on construction documents 3.37 12
Failure to appoint a project manager 3.02 13
In a similar vein, Campbell (1997) also revealed that, construction disputes generally occur
due to the following: Improper contractual documentation; Poor communication between the
parties; the inability to understand terms of contract and expectations of the parties.
Moreover, According to Kwakye (1997), disputes may arise on a project for a number of
reasons, some well-known ones include: Shortcomings, omissions and error in contract
documentation giving rise to ambiguities in contract requirements; Delays in the supply of
general construction information; late issue of instruction varying some section of the works;
Increase in scope of work (change, extra and errors) without proper consideration for
extension of production time.
Consultant related causes of disputes in construction projects
Table 2 reveals the respondents ranking of factors that cause disputes in construction projects.
It shows that late information delivery was ranked the first with a mean score of 4.22;
incompleteness of drawings was ranked the second with a mean score of 4.12,
underestimation was ranked the third with a mean score of 4.06; design oversight was ranked
the fourth with a mean score of 3.844; Incompleteness of specification was ranked the firth
with a mean score of 3.81; specification oversight was ranked the sixth with the mean score
of 3.67; failure to fulfil agreed responsibilities was ranked the seventh with a mean score of
3.55 and over design was ranked the eightieth with a mean score of 3.04.
Moreover, the results supports the work of Campbell (1997) under the consultant category it
reveal the following as the major causes of disputes: Late information; Design errors; Design
inadequacies; Late information; Incompetence information; Ambiguous specifications; Lack
of appropriate competence; and Under-certifying.
191
Table 2: Consultant related causes of disputes
Causes of disputes MIS Rank
Late information delivery 4.22 1
Incompleteness of drawings 4.12 2
Underestimation 4.06 3
Design oversight 3.84 4
Incompleteness of specification 3.81 5
Specification oversight 3.67 6
Failure to fulfil agreed responsibilities 3.55 7
Over design 3.04 8
Contractor related causes of disputes in construction projects
Nevertheless, results shows the respondents ranking of factors that cause disputes in
construction projects. It reveals that delay/suspension of works was ranked the first with a
mean score of 4.06; failure to correctly bid or price the works was ranked the second with a
mean score of 3.83;misinterpretation of the contract was ranked the third with a mean score
of 3.83; failure to keep an updated programme plan was ranked the fourth with a mean score
of 3.80;furthermore t table shows that inadequate coordination was ranked the seventh with a
mean score of 3.65; reluctant to seek clarification was ranked the eightieth with a mean score
of 3.47; inadequate CPM scheduling was ranked the tenth with a mean score of 3.35 and
inadequate update requirements was ranked the eleventh with a mean score of 3.29. However,
Campbell (1997) identified the following as the major causes of disputes; inadequate site
management; Poor programming; Poor workmanship; Failure to follow conditions of
contract; Inability to substantiate costs at the appropriate time. Table 3: Contractor related causes of disputes
Causes of disputes MIS Rank
Delay / suspension of works 4.06 1
Failure to correctly bid or price the works 3.83 2
Misinterpretation of the contract agreement 3.83 3
Failure to keep an updated programme plan 3.80 4
Inadequate contractors management 3.80 5
Inadequate supervision 3.71 6
Inadequate coordination 3.65 7
Reluctant to seek clarification 3.47 8
Failure to execute the changes of works 3.45 9
Inadequate CPM scheduling 3.35 10
Inadequate update requirements 3.29 11
Effects of disputes in construction projects
Table 4 reveals the respondents ranking of effects of disputes in construction projects. It
shows that cost overruns was ranked the first with a mean score of 4.45; time overruns was
ranked the second with a mean score of 4.43; loss of profitability was ranked the third with a
mean score of 4.29, however, reworks was ranked the firth with a mean score of 3.94; loss of
professional reputation was ranked the seventh with a mean score of 3.84; loss of company
reputation was ranked the eightieth with a mean score of. Furthermore, loss of business
viability was ranked the tenth with a mean score of 3.79 and litigation was ranked the
eleventh with a mean score of 3.65.
192
Table 4: Effects of disputes in construction projects
Effects of disputes MIS Rank
Cost overruns 4.45 1
Time overruns 4.43 2
Loss of profitability 4.29 3
Additional expenses in managerial and administration 4.19 4
Reworks 3.94 5
Relocation cost (men, equipment and material) 3.84 6
Loss of professional reputation 3.84 7
Loss of company reputation 3.82 8
Loss of respect between parties 3.81 9
Loss of business viability 3.79 10
Litigation 3.65 11
However, the findings are in general agreement with the study done by Yiu and Cheung,
(2004) that states that ,as a result of issues arising in projects, conflict and disputes may
occur, which can lead to the disruption of construction schedules, increased project costs, and
even adversely influence relationships between project participants. Nevertheless, if a dispute
is not resolved promptly; it may escalate, and ultimately require litigation proceedings, which
can be extremely costly for the parties concerned (Cheung et al., 2004).
Conclusion and Recommendations
This results obtained confirms previous research that construction projects are generally
complex and for this reason, disputes are always present and therefore a common feature of
the construction industry. Nevertheless, the results of the survey gave an indication that,
indeed, problems naturally arises on construction projects because of multiple stakeholders,
human imperfections, and communication difficulties and thus disagreements will certainly
arise because a project participant may fail to perform, respond properly and timely,
communicate or understand construction information. Therefore, eliminating these problems
or even reducing their magnitude can save project clients not only money, but the time and
stress involved in having to deal with such problems. Additionally, researchers have found
that the causes of construction disputes are primarily stakeholders (namely client, consultants
and contractor) to any project are the main reasons for disputes on construction projects.
However, at the end of the study, the researcher also established that, indeed, stakeholders
such as client, consultants and contractor are a prime cause of construction disputes, and
therefore the only solution to it as well. As a result of this, some specific recommendations
were made to each of them to help prevent disputes early.
These recommendations are as follows:
It is recommended that Clients should: Provide a good and clear brief to the design team;
Set up independent contract review team to review the contract document as a whole;
Appoint the appropriate project team to monitor the progress of works and carry out
supervision; and have adequate funds for the project to make payments as and when due.
193
Moreover, Consultants should: Carefully, adequately and accurately prepare contract
documents which are consistent throughout; identifying responsibilities and allocating
risks to the party best able to control it; Providing specifications which are clearly
written, reflecting the skills, materials and plant readily available and finally relating to
the specific project; Refrain from simply adding to or deleting specifications from sets of
previously employed documents and using them; and Preparing contract bills of
quantities using adequate tender information so that there is accuracy in both descriptions
and quantities;
It is further recommended that Contractors should also do the following to help prevent
disputes: Only tender for works you have expertise to do; do not accept any job when you
sense that the job is going to be more trouble than it‘s worth. Use foresight rather than
hindsight; Employ qualified staff; Pay attention to what is written in the contract and
never skim over it without reading all of the terms and understanding what they mean.
The strategies recommended and the specific recommendations made, when accepted and
adhered to, will enable project managers and other stakeholders to address problems in a
timely manner, thus allow projects to continue with minimum delay and disruption.
Acknowledgement
My special gratitude goes to:
My supervisors, Dr Clinton Aigbavboa and Mr Joseph Mulenga Mukuka, for their
guidance, detailed supervision, useful suggestions, encouragement and constructive
criticisms throughout this research.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude and grateful appreciation to my boss Jannie
De Beer for his invaluable guidance, advice, encouragement and help throughout the
project.
A special acknowledgement must be given to my sponsor and employer Tubular
Holdings, for their financial support.
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Malaysia.
Burns, N. & Grooves, K.G. ( 1993): The practice of Nursing Research Conduct, Critique and
Utilization: Second Edition, Philadelphia: WB Saunders Company.
Campebell, P. (1997).Construction disputes avoidance and resolution: Whittles publishing
Roseleight House Latheronwheel: Scotland.
Carmichael, D.G. (2002). ―Disputes and international projects‖: CRC Press: Boca Raton.
Cheung, S.O., Suen, H.H.C., Ng, S.T.T. & Leung, M.L. (2004).‖ Convergent views of
Neutrals and users about alternative dispute resolution‖. Journal of Management in
Engineering, 20(3), pp. 88-96.
Hall, J.M. (2002) Ineffective communication: Common causes of construction disputes.
Alliance‘s Advisory Council Legal Notes. 13(2).
Keil, J. (1999). ―Hybrid ADR in the construction industry. Dispute Resolution‖. Journal of
Construction Management. 54(3), pp. 14–22.
194
Kwakye, A.A. (1997). Construction project administration in practice: Addison Wesley
Longman Limited: London.
Levy, S.M. (2007). Project Management in construction 5th
ed. McGraw Hill.
Love, P.E.D., Edwards, D.J., Irani, Z. & Walker, D.H.T. (2008a). ‗Project pathogens: The
anatomy omission errors in construction and engineering projects‖. IEEE Transactions on
Engineering Management (In Press).
Love, P.E.D., Davis, P., Baccarini, D. & Edwards, D. (2008b). ―Uncertainty avoidance:
public sector clients and procurement selection‖. International Journal of Public Sector
Management (In press).
Love P.E.D. & Gunasekaran, A. Li (1998) Concurrent Engineering: A Strategy for Procuring
Construction Projects, International Journal of Project Management, 16(6), pp. 375-83.
Lowe, Fenn, P.D. & Speek C. (1997), Conflict and dispute in construction, Contract
Management Economics, Journal of Management in Engineering, 18(1), pp. 20.
Polit, D. & Hungler, B.P. (1993). Essentials of nursing research. Methods, appraisal and
utilization: 3rd edition. Philadelphia: Lippincott.
Rarooqui, R.U. & Azhar, S. (2014) Key Causes of Disputes in the Pakistani Construction
Industry – Assessment of Trends from the Viewpoint of Contractors: 50th ASC Annual
International Conference Proceedings.
Yiu, K.T.W. & Cheung, S.O. (2004). ―Significant dispute sources of construction
mediation‖. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on the World of
Construction Project Management, 27th-28th May, Toronto, Canada.
195
An empirical analysis of dispute causation in the Limpopo
construction industry ME Thobakgale and CO Aigbavboa
Department of Construction Management & Quantity Surveying
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
The lack of information in the construction industry leads to many disputes during the
construction process. Hence this paper investigates the dispute causation in the Limpopo
construction industry. This is with an aim to provide a basis or the understanding of the range
of values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviour displayed by these different professional groups
involved in the construction process. This paper presents the results of the professional
respondents on causes of disputes in the Limpopo construction industry. This article
investigates the causes of dispute in the Limpopo construction Industry. The primary data for
the study was collected through a structured questionnaire survey distribution to a sample of
51 professionals from the Limpopo construction industry. Findings revealed that there are
four categories of disputes, which are construction related, contract related, management
related and finance related causes of disputes, which each of those categories has factors
dominating to the dispute causations. This study adds knowledge on causes of disputes in the
construction industry.
Keywords:
Construction, Dispute, Finance, Management, Limpopo Province, South Africa
Introduction
The construction industry imposes a number of challenges to those working in it; one
important challenge is that the industry is dependent upon human interactions in the
management of building projects (Weddikkara, 2003). In this industry it is important for
those who manage the projects to deal with intricate relationships, and to consider the
emotions, interactions and various types or reasoning that lie behind the actions and decisions
taken by the participants. Hence, Ilter (2012) highlights that prevention of disputes becomes
one of the most important processes that determine the performance of a construction project
and it depends highly on sound understanding of dispute occurrence.
According to Love and Davis (2008), disputes are an endemic feature in the construction
industry. When not properly resolved, they may escalate and ultimately require litigation
proceedings, which can be extremely costly for the parties concerned, states (Cheung et al.,
2004). Disputes always affect the productivity and performance of a project. Ankrah (2009)
highlights that the history of construction points out that almost all projects face variation or
poor performance with many projects failing to exceed to the expectation of the client thus,
affecting time, cost and quality of the projects. According to (Love, et al., 2010), direct costs
associated with disputes range from 0.5 to 5 percent of the projects contract value. The
indirect costs, on the other hand, resulting from lost productivity, stress, fatigue, loss of future
196
work, the cost of strained business relationships among the various parties and tarnished
reputation may cause even more damages to the parties involved. Therefore, this current
research will investigate the perception of professionals on the causes of disputes and ways to
mitigate them in the Limpopo province construction industry. This paper contains discussions
on the theory of causes of disputes and dispute mitigation methods in the Limpopo
construction industry. This paper makes significant insight onto how projects can be
completed on time thus overcoming disputes in construction projects. The paper starts with
an overview of causes of construction disputes, followed by the presentation of the
methodology and findings from the data collected before conclusion is drawn.
Causes of disputes
In most developed countries, the construction industry accounts for over 50% of fixed capital
formation each year, states (Weddikkara, 2003). It is also a complicated industry where
different professionals work together to form a final product that a client‘s needs. Disputes
are more likely to occur and disagreements to arise where there are more people with
different views and opinions about a certain case. According to Waldon, (2006), scope
changes, erroneous documentation, ambiguous contract conditions; continue to be
fundamental contributors of disputes in the construction industry. There are a number of
activities that, when not managed properly, can lead to disputes in the construction industry.
The construction industry is characterized by temporary human relationships and contractual
commitments (Weddikkara, 2003). Whilst, Farooqul et al. (2014) categorised disputes into
the following groups as follows; construction related causes, financial / economical,
management and contract related causes of disputes, which will elaborately discussed in the
subsequent sessions.
Construction related causes of disputes
In a study by Farooqul et al., 2014), an analysis of the responses of construction related
causes of disputes depict that all of the respondents were said that ―unrealistic information
expectations, unclear risk allocation and unfair risk allocation are those causes that are
occurring most frequently and contributing in arising of disputes in the projects, their severity
is also very high. Whereas unrealistic tender pricing is the most severe in nature in their
projects, described by all of the respondents. Other causes of disputes are not significantly
contributing in the projects in terms of their frequency and severity. Unrealistic tender pricing
has been found to be the most and poor supervision is the least treacherous causes of disputes
respectively as perceived by the contractors operating in the local construction sector.
Financial / economical causes of disputes
According to Farooqul (2014), finance is one of the most important aspects of business
management. In the context of construction business, "Project finance" refers to the financing
of the project that is dependent on the project cash's flows for repayment as defined by the
contractual relationships within each project whereas the financial function plays a significant
role in ensuring that company objectives are compatible with its resources. For this reason the
disputes have a monetary trait attached to it and it is of such magnitude which none of the
project participant is ever ready to absorb. According to NaAyudhya (2011), it was found that
financial dispute problems were ranked second in the serious dispute problem group and
second in the domestic and international funded project group.
197
The previous analysis of financial/economical causes of disputes elaborate that all of the
respondents perceived that project participant‘s default is the most frequent cause of dispute
and rising value of Rands is the most severe cause of disputes in construction projects, also
their severity and frequency is respectively significantly high. Whereas inadequate financial
strength of the project participants is also very severe and frequent cause of dispute in the
construction projects described by most construction professionals.
Management related causes of disputes
Effective management of projects is becoming increasingly important for any type of
organization to remain competitive in today‘s dynamic business environment due to pressure
of globalization. Through application of construction management tools and techniques and
observing a sound project management system, majority of the causes of disputes can be
avoided thereby reducing the chances that any dispute arises in the first place and if such
thing come about it does not escalate to such a level that it is converted into a major conflict
or breach of contract. Bielefeld and Rusch (2006) note that a building contractor is an
individual who plan, develop and coordinate activities, which coincide with the building of
structures. The building contractor is the individual who oversees the construction and
ensures that all necessary measures are taken to result in the completed finished product.
A building contractor is someone with a wide range of duties and responsibilities when it
comes to the construction of residences or businesses. This individual has a job that entails
hard work and thorough review of many processes which accompany the building of
structures. Their jobs could be at stake if they don‘t perform as required or if they don‘t
deliver the desired final product of the clients. Disputes may occur if the contactor does not
have adequate contractor‘s management, supervision and coordination and fails to plan and
execute the changes of works. Reluctance to seek clarification can lead to serious
disagreements between the construction team as the final product will not be achieved as
specified.
Contract related causes of disputes
According to Farooqul (2014,) the business environment is full of agreements between
businesses and individuals and construction is no exception. While oral agreements can be
used is more appropriate to opt for formal written contracts when engaging in operations.
Written contracts provide individuals and businesses with a legal document stating the
expectations of both parties and how negative situations will be resolved. Contracts also are
legally enforceable in a court of law. Contracts often represent a tool that companies use to
safeguard their resources. If there are some flaws in the formulation of contract documents,
ambiguous language of the contract can be a cause of dispute. These causes and many others
relevant to the domain of contract have a very high potential to be the source of diverse types
disputes.
Research Methodology
The data used in this paper were derived from both primary and secondary sources. The
primary data was obtained through the survey method, while the secondary data was derived
from the review of literature. The primary data was obtained through the use of a structured
questionnaire aimed at professionals in the construction industry based in the Limpopo
198
province. The respondents were selected based on the fact that they have a qualification in a
construction related field and have working experience in order to meet the research
objectives. Random sampling was used to select the professionals in the construction industry
‘. According to Kombo and Tromp (2006), random sampling is the probability whereby
people, place or things are randomly selected. Out of the 51 questionnaires sent out, all were
received back representing 100% response rate and all were usable. A 5-point Likert type
scale was used to analyse the ‗professionals‘ levels of agreement on the causes of disputes,
ways to mitigate against them, and the common dispute resolution methods used in the
construction industry of Limpopo. This was considered adequate for the analysis based on the
assertion by (Mukuka et al., 2013) that the result of a survey could be considered as biased
and of little value if the return rate was lower than 30% to 40%. Because the sample size for
this study was relatively small, all groups of respondents were lumped together in the
analysis in order to obtain significant results. The data were analysed by calculating
frequencies and the mean item score (MIS) of the rated factors. The calculation of the MIS is
explained in the next section. The research was conducted between the months of June to
October, 2014. The questionnaire was designed based on the information gathered during the
literature review and does not form part of an existing survey instrument.
Mean Item Score (MIS)
Following the mathematical computations, the criteria are then ranked in descending order of
their relative importance index (from the highest to the lowest). The next section of the article
presents the findings of the survey and some discussions.
A 5-point Likert type scale was used to determine the causes of dispute in the South African
construction industry with regard to the identified factors from the reviewed literature. The
adopted scale read as follows, 1= Strongly disagree, 2= Disagree, 3= Neutral, 4= Agree and
5= Strongly agree. The five-point scale was transformed to mean item score (MIS) for each
of the causes and resolution methods as assessed by the respondents. The indices were then
used to determine the rank of each item. These rankings made it possible to cross compare
the relative importance of the items as perceived by the respondents. This method was also
adopted to analyse the data collected from the questionnaire survey.
The computation of the mean item score (MIS) was calculated from the total of all weighted
responses and then relating it to the total responses on a particular aspect. This was based on
the principle that respondents‘ score on all the selected criteria, considered together, are the
empirically determined indices of relative importance. The index of MIS of a particular factor
is the sum of the respondents‘ actual scores (on the 5- point scale) given by all the
respondents‘ as a proportion of the sum of all maximum possible score on the 5- point scale
that all the respondents could give that criterion. Weighting were assigned to each responses
ranging from one to five for the responses of ‗strongly disagree‘ to ‗strongly agree‘. To
determine the common causes of disputes between professionals in the Construction Industry,
a 5- point likert scale was employed. The respondents were asked to rate to what extent the
mentioned were common causes of disputes between professionals on construction projects
on the scale from 1 – 5 (that is never, rarely, sometimes, often, always). The 5- point scale
was transformed to a Mean Item Score (MIS) for each of the statements. A weight was
assigned to each responds. The indices were then used to determine the rank of each item.
The ranking made it possible to cross compare the relative importance of the statements as
perceived by the respondents. The mean item score (MIS) is ranked in descending order from
highest to lowest). The mean item score (MIS) was derived from the following formula (Lim
and Alum, 1995).
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Findings and Discussion
It was found out that out of 51 respondents, (57%) were male and (43%) were female. The
majority of the respondents (33.3%) were within the age group of 26-30, followed by
(25.5%) of the respondents who belong to the group below 26. The ethnicity that comprises
the majority of the respondents was blacks (66.7%), followed by (17.6%) whites. Majority of
the respondents positions (35.3%) were quantity surveyors, followed by (23.5%) civil
engineers. Majority of the respondents‘ highest education qualification were (41.2%)
diploma, followed by (39.2%) bachelors‘ degree(s) and the minority were (7.8%) masters‘
degree. The respondents were asked the years of experience in the construction industry,
(41.2%) had between 1-5 years, followed by (23.5%) 5-10 years. Majority of the respondents
work for (51%) consultants, followed by (19.6%) clients and contractors, then (9.8%) were
working for the government. The respondents were asked the number of projects they‘re
involved in, (43.1%) were involved in 1-2 projects, followed by (27.5%) 3-4 projects.
Majority of the respondents (54.5%) were involved in 1-2 projects impacted by disputes,
followed by (25%) of respondents who were not in projects which were impacted by
disputes. Respondents were asked the number of disputes experienced in projects they‘re
currently involved in and (81.8%) were 1-5 disputes, followed by (15.2%) 6-10 disputes.
Majority of the respondents projects which frequently encounter disputes (23.5%) were
schools and renovations, followed by (12.3%) hospitals. Respondents were asked to view on
how often the work program is affected by disputes, (48.5%) said always, followed by
(21.2%) who said often or sometimes.
Construction related causes of disputes
Respondents were asked to rate their opinion based on construction related causes of disputes
in the construction industry. Based on the ranking of the weighted average from the mean
item score (MIS) for listed statements (Table 1), it was observed that the majority was Lack
of professionalism of project participants, Lack of machinery and plants, Reluctance to seek
clarification by the contractor, and lack of competence of project participants, Inappropriate
selection of subcontractors, Poor supervision, Lack of appropriate level of man
power,Unrealistic tender pricing, Unrealistic information expectations, Unfair risk allocation,
Unclear risk allocation was ranked last.
Table 1: Construction related causes of disputes
Aspect MIS Std. Dv. Rank
Lack of professionalism of project participants 4.08 0.534 1
Lack of machinery/ plants 4.02 0.845 2
Reluctance to seek clarification by the contractor 4.00 0.782 3
Lack of competence of project participants 4.00 0.571 3
Inappropriate selection of subcontractors 3.94 0.843 4
Poor supervision 3.86 0.756 5
Lack of appropriate level of man power 3.84 0.792 6
Unrealistic tender pricing 3.78 0.737 7
Unrealistic information expectations 3.72 0.858 8
Unfair risk allocation 3.68 0.844 9
Unclear risk allocation 3.62 0.878 10
200
The findings of the present study disagree with findings from previous researchers. For
instance Farooqui and Azhar (2014), which both found that the main factors that influence
the cause of construction related disputes were unrealistic tender pricing, poor supervision
and unrealistic information. Whilst the current study revealed that lack of professionalism of
project participants, lack of machinery/plants and reluctance to seek clarification by the
contractor were found to be the major factors that can cause construction related causes of
disputes as shown in (Table 1).
Contract related causes of disputes
Likewise, respondents were asked to rate their opinion on contract related causes of disputes
in the construction industry. Based on the ranking of the weighted average from the mean
item score (MIS) for listed statements (Table 2), it was observed that the majority was
Breaches of contract by the project participants, exaggerated claims, unrealistic tender
pricing, Untimely presentation of claims, Ambiguous contract documents and Contract clause
interpretation, Ambiguous contract language. These findings were found to disagree with the
works of Waldron (2006) which found that the main factors that influence the cause of
construction related disputes were contract interpretation and late incomplete or substandard
information. Whilst the current study revealed that breach of contract by project participants,
exaggerated claims and unrealistic tender pricing are the major factors that can cause contract
related causes of disputes as shown in (Table 2).
Table 2: Contract related causes of disputes
Aspect MIS Std. Dv. Rank
Breaches of contract by the project participants 4.16 0.874 1
Exaggerated claims 3.94 0.689 2
Unrealistic tender pricing 3.86 0.707 3
Untimely presentation of claims 3.82 0.727 4
Contract clause interpretation 3.51 0.893 5
Ambiguous contract documents 3.51 0.960 5
Ambiguous contract language 3.39 1.037 6
Management related causes of disputes
Respondents were asked to rate their opinion on management related causes of disputes in the
construction industry. Based on the ranking of the weighted average from the mean item
score (MIS) for listed statements (Table 3), it was observed that the majority was Negligence
was, Inappropriate payment schedule, Poor procurement management, Poor communication,
and Changing of orders, Poor procurement management and Unrealistic expectations, Poor
coordination, Inadequate contract administration, Lack of risk management, Unrealistic
construction schedule, Lack of team spirit, Lack of contingency provision in schedule.
These findings were found to disagree with the works of Kumaraswamy (1997) and Yiu and
Cheung (2004) which both found that the main factors that influence the cause of
construction related disputes were inaccurate design information, Inadequate design
information, Delay in work progress and inadequate site investigations. Whilst the current
study revealed that negligence, inappropriate payment schedule and inappropriate contract
type are the major factors that can cause management related causes of disputes as shown in
(Table 3).
201
Table 3: Management related causes of disputes
Aspect MIS Std Dv. Rank
Negligence 4.08 0.891 1
Inappropriate payment schedule 4.06 0.705 2
Inappropriate contract type 4.00 0.748 3
Poor communication 3.96 0.662 4
Changing of orders 3.96 0.662 4
Poor procurement management 3.88 0.84 5
Unrealistic expectations 3.88 0.621 5
Poor coordination 3.84 0.834 6
Inadequate contract administration 3.8 0.872 7
Lack of risk management 3.75 0.935 8
Unrealistic construction schedules 3.73 0.75 9
Lack of team spirit 3.67 0.864 10
Lack of contingency provision in schedules 3.59 0.726 11
Financial related causes of disputes
Furthermore, respondents were asked to rate their opinion on financial related causes of
disputes in the construction industry. Based on the ranking of the weighted average from the
mean item score (MIS) for listed statements (Table 4), it was observed that the majority was
Inadequate financial strength of the contractor, Delay in payments, Project participants
default of payments, Material price fluctuations, Rising value of Rand. These findings were
found to be in agreement with the works of Cheung and Yui (2006) which both found that the
main factors that influence the cause of construction related disputes were delay in payment
and project participants‘ default of payments. Whilst the current study revealed that
inadequate financial strength of the contractor, delay in payments and participant‘s default of
payments are the major factors that can cause management related causes of disputes as
shown in (Table 4).
Table 4: Financial related causes of disputes
Aspect MIS Std. Dv. Rank
Inadequate financial strength of the contractor 4.30 0.65 1
Delay in payments 4.28 0.76 2
Project participants default of payments 3.62 0.90 3
Material price fluctuations 3.06 0.84 4
Rising value of rand 2.90 0.71 5
From the survey results obtained from the respondents, lack of professionalism of project
participants, lack of machinery / plants, breaches of contract by project participants,
exaggerated claims, negligence, inappropriate payment schedule, inadequate financial
strength of the contractor and delay in payments were the major causes of disputes in
Polokwane, Limpopo. Therefore, it can be concluded that making payments on time,
planning and funding would highly reduce construction disputes in Polokwane. Hence, it can
be inferred that the research objective was met based on the findings from the structured
questionnaire survey
202
Conclusion and Further Research
Literature review showed that construction related causes of disputes are at different levels
ranging from construction related, contract related, management related and financial related
causes of disputes. The literature showed that each category of the causes of disputes had
different factors that can lead to disputes on construction projects. This study examined
causes of disputes between professionals in construction projects from the four identified
categories as compiled from the extensive literature review. Findings from the study
supported work done by previous researchers and scholars that not a singular factor is
responsible for causing disputes on construction projects. The empirical study, although
based on small sample of construction professionals in Polokwane, indicate findings of the
causes of disputes in Polokwane, Limpopo. In terms of reliability of the methodology
adopted, when the procedure is followed in a bigger and more diverse sample, findings would
justify the current study. Therefore, the results revealed in this study give valuable insights
for the improvement of much better ways of running construction projects to avoid disputes.
Further research includes:
An evaluation of ways of minimising disputes in the construction industry.
An evaluation of the effective dispute resolution methods used in the South African
construction industry.
An investigation into the challenges facing the construction industry in Limpopo.
An evaluation on the relationship between the consultants and contractors in Polokwane.
An investigation of the challenges that are faced by contractors in Polokwane.
An evaluation on the relationship between professional culture and disputes in the
construction industry.
References Ankrah, N.I. (2009) An investigation into the impact of culture on construction project
performance. University of Wolverhampton.
Bielefeld, B. & Rusch, L.P. (2006) Building projects in China. A manual for Architects &
Engineers, pp. 68.
Cheung, S.O., Seun, H.H.C., Ng, S.T.T. and Leung, M.L., (2004) Convergent views of
neutrals and users about alternative dispute resolution. Journal of Management in
Engineering, 20(3), pp. 88.
Cheung, S. and Yiu, T. (2006) Are construction disputes inevitable? IEEE Transactions on
Engineering Management, 53(3), pp. 456-470.
Farooqul, R.U., Umer, M. and Azhar, S. (2014) Key causes of disputes in the Pakistani
construction industry- assessment of trends from the viewpoint of contractor. NED
University of Engineering and Technology Karachi, Pakistan.
Ilter, D. (2012) Identification of the relation between dispute factors and dispute categories in
construction projects. International Journal of Law in the Built Environment, 4(1), pp. 46.
Kombo, D.K. and Tromp, D.L.A. (2006) Proposal and thesis writing: An introduction.
Nairobi, Kenya: Paulines publications for Africa.
Kumaraswamy, M. (1997) Conflicts, claims and disputes in construction. Engineering,
Construction and Architectural Management, 4(2), pp. 95-111.
Lim, E.C. and Alum, J. (1995) Construction Productivity: Issues encountered by contractors
in Singapore.‖ International Journal of Project Management, 13(1), pp. 51-58.
203
Love, P., Davis, P., Ellis, J. and Cheung, S.O. (2010)Dispute causation: identification of
pathogenic influences in construction. Engineering, Construction and Architectural
Management, 17(4), pp. 404-423.
Love, P., Davis, P., Ellis, J. (2008) Dispute causation identification of pathogenic influence in
construction. Department of Construction Management, Curtin University of Technology,
Perth, Australia.
Mukuka, M.J., Aigbavboa, C.O. and Thwala, W.D. (2013) Construction professional‘s
perception on the causes and effects of project delay in Lusaka, Zambia.
NaAyudhya, B.I. (2011). Common disputes related to public work projects in Thailand.
Thailand.
Thomas, K.W. and Kilmann, R.M. (1974) Thomas-Kilmann conflict mode instrument,
Xicom, Tuxedo, New York.
Waldron, B.D. (2006), ‗Scope for improvement: a survey of pressure points in Australian
construction and infrastructure projects‘. A report prepared for the Australian constructors
Association by Blake Dawson Waldron lawyers, Sydney.
Weddikkara, C. (2003), The impact of professional culture on dispute resolution in the
building industries of Australia and Sri-Lanka, Murdoch University.
Yiu, K. and Cheung, S. (2004) Significant dispute sources of construction mediation. In: 1st
International Conference World of Construction Project Management, Toronto, Canada.
204
Exploratory study of critical success factors of road
infrastructure projects in Abuja, Nigeria: A probabilistic
approach 1Ibrahim Binchak,
2Emmanuel Achuenu and
3Ache Achuenu
1,2Department of Building,
University of Jos, Nigeria 3Department of Urban and Regional Planning,
University of Jos, Nigeria [email protected]
Abstract: The relative importance criterion most often used in surveys does not evaluate the probability
of success or impact of the Key Performance Indictors (KPIs) on project performance. It is
therefore necessary to adopt an effective two dimensional model, in which both probability
and impact factors can be quantified and a common ranking parameter determined. It was
based on this that the research aimed at carrying out a compressive study of critical success
factors (CSF) of road infrastructure projects in Abuja, Nigeria using probability approach
with a view to developing a framework for assessing these factors. The method adopted in
carrying out the research was by the use of structured questionnaires. A total of 50 sets of
structured questionnaires were distributed to 50 participants out of which 35 returned but
only 30 were used in the analysis. The results of probabilities and the impacts of the
Construction Project Monitoring (CPM) factors provided by 30 participants were used to
calculate the Success Indices (𝛈) which enabled ranking of the factors. It was found out that the highest impact on project success was availability of resources with success index of
0.67, followed closely by inadequacy of trained labour force (0.62) and the least were site
inconsistencies and ecological factors (0.04), environmental performance deficiencies and
impacts (0.04) and social demands and regional complications (0.04). A framework for
assessing critical success factors in road infrastructure projects was developed and hereby
recommended for effective project delivery. Although, there are numerous factors that affect
the performance of road infrastructure projects in Nigeria, the necessary mitigation measures
require a well-developed scale from which the weight of each factor can be assessed and the
required resources allocated to enhance solution development.
Keywords:
Infrastructure, Performance evaluation, Road, Nigeria
Introduction Performance measurement involves the collection and comprehensive analysis of information
about various activities, specifically work in place and the corresponding work-hours over a
given period of time. Work hours, quantity and productivity are evaluated against the planned
or baseline values used in project estimates (Lin and Shen 2007; Ikediashi et al., 2012). The
most commonly accepted performance indicators are those that can be physically measured in
terms of naira equivalent (cost) and man-hours (time). Like any other business, construction
companies look first to the areas which show a change in the amount of revenue generated.
Without a measurable improvement in terms of a cost reduction or a quantifiable increase in
productivity, most managers will consider the changes a failure (Ikediashi et al., 2012).
205
According to Westerveld (2003), project success is the satisfaction of all stakeholders
however, perceiving project success simply as the compliance with time, cost and quality
constraints is viewed as narrow in this respect. Wateridge (1998) and Lim and Mohammed
(1999) opine that it is impossible to generate a universal checklist of project success criteria
suitable for all projects. Success criteria will differ from project to project depending on a
number of issues, for example, size, uniqueness and complexity. In order to develop a model
for projects that links success criteria and success factors a more flexible approach seems
appropriate. This more flexible approach lies in using clusters of possible success criteria.
Assuming that criteria defining project success is different for each project, a universal
clustering of criteria can be formulated to cover the whole issue of project success
(Westerveld, 2003; Belassi and Tukel, 1996).
Aibinu and Jagboro (2002) identified several factors responsible for time delays and cost
overruns, which further result in poor performance of Nigerian construction projects. Aibinu
and Odeyinka (2006) also asserted that deficiencies in project management, performance
assessment, and internal controls contribute to project delays and further impact upon
performance outcomes. As evidenced recently in Nigeria Politico (2012), six delayed major
road projects including ―Shagamu-Ore-Benin road, Abuja-Lokoja project, Kano-Maiduguri
Expressway, Onitsha-Enugu-Port Harcourt Expressway, Second Niger Bridge, and Oweto
Bridge‖ have all failed to meet their timeframe objectives as a direct result of serious
contract-based disputes and discrepancies.
In order to study the performance of road projects, a quantitative approach has been adopted
in this study. Pakseresht and Asgari (2012) asserted that project performance is affected by
several critical success factors, whose impact cannot be quantified directly. However, a
numerical scale can be developed to assess different attributes of the identified factors.
Similarly, Shen et al. (2001) asserted that questionnaire data can be evaluated using
probabilistic models, provided a method is developed to convert participants‘ opinions along
a numerical scale. In a study by Willis and Rankin (2012), the relationship between
performance and maturity of construction industry in Guyana was demonstrated numerically
through conversion of a string coded scale into a numerical scale.
The current performance evaluation frameworks from literature are based on either
qualitative data arranged in the form of flow charts or quantitative data based on relative
importance. According to Shen et al. (2001), relative importance criterion is a one
dimensional approach that fails to take into account other important parameters. According to
Cox et al. (2003) and Chan and Chan (2004), the KPIs are good indicators of the performance
of construction projects and provide a useful framework for measuring and comparing project
performance. Haponava and Al-Jibouri (2012) proposed a performance evaluation system
based on key performance indicators (KPIs), and developed a ranking criterion based on a
two dimensional model, that was further reviewed by Ozorhon, Dikmen and Birgonul (2011).
In a research by Shen and Liu (2003), it was found that the weight of critical success factors
(CSFs) for a construction project can be determined through the use of the available two
dimensional models developed by past researchers. In this regard, a two dimensional model
based on probability and impact, has been selected for the framework developed in this
research.
The two dimensional model, first introduced by Shen et al. (2001), was adopted in this
research as the main evaluating tool. Initially, the model was developed for use in
determining the significance index (SI) for a total of 37 identified risk factors (Shen et al.,
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2001). However, the model was further modified by Ningyuan et al. (2013) and used to
evaluate different performance indicators associated with pavement construction in Canada.
It has been argued that a two dimensional model consisting of two attributes: probability of
occurrence and impact associated with the occurrence of the first attribute can be used to
provide an effective measure of score (Shen et al., 2001; Rankin, 2012; Subramanyan,
Sawant and Bhatt, 2012; Nassar, and Hosny, 2013). The original model used by Shen et al.
(2001) is stated in equation 1:
Where, β is the probability of occurrence and α, the impact associated with the occurrence of
attribute β. However, the formulation only shows that SI is a function of attributes .
This approach has not been tested and applied in studying road construction projects in
Nigeria.
Thus, the main aim of this research was to carry out a compressive study of CSFs of road
infrastructure projects in Abuja, Nigeria using probability approach in order to develop a
framework for assessing these factors.
Research Methodology
The method adopted in collecting the data in this research was by the use of structured
questionnaires.
All survey participants were project managers identified through direct contact with leading
Civil Engineering Construction Firms in Abuja. A total of 50 sets of structured questionnaires
were distributed to 50 participants. Out of the 35 returned, 5 were disqualified because of
inconsistent responses to some of the questions.
The result of probabilities and the impacts of the CPM factors responded by 30 participants
were used to calculate the Success Index (𝛈) using (Kansal and Sharma, 2012),
Where, is the probability of occurrence of factor a, as responded by participant (b) while
is the impact of occurrence by the same respondent. The success indices were then used to
rank the success factors
Findings and Discussion
Performance Management in the Abuja Civil Engineering Construction Industry
From the results, 83.3% of the respondents reveal that in their firms, performance monitoring
is based upon project outcomes, not the processes which facilitate those outcomes. Also,
26.7% identified Information Technology (IT) infrastructure as the primary resource for cross
team communication, a factor which may be tied to procedural and resource-based limitations
within these organisations. Furthermore, 70% agreed that their organisations required
improved information and knowledge management. It is argued that core deficiencies in
technical, human, and physical resources contribute to fragmented performance monitoring,
an outcome which may result in constraints over the long term. Out of the respondents,
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93.3% agreed that performance evaluation outcomes should be shared with the entire
construction team, 56.6% reported that their organisations do not allow participation in
decision making processes. This finding is particularly important in light of the requirements
of a comprehensive, participative Project Evaluation Framework (PEF) within such a
complex industry as Civil Engineering Construction.
Most of the respondents (96.7%) indicate that frequent design changes and adaptations result
in cost overruns for the project, while 83.3% indicated that time constraints are due to
bureaucratic or policy issues. It was stated that two of the leading performance impact
variables, cost and time, affect road projects in spite of controls systems. Some of the
respondents (40%) suggest that PEF are idealistic in nature and not realistic, whilst 56.7%
confirmed that KPI must include consequences (financial penalties, lost contracts, etc.) in
order for them to have value within the projects. All the participants (100%) agreed that each
project presents a unique set of challenges that require a more realistic PEF.
It was observed from the results that 83.3% of the respondents confirmed that more effective
contracting can provide opportunities for performance improvement. However, the
prevalence of external influences was identified by 96.7% as a core limitation on
effectiveness and decision making outcomes. The respondents (70%) also rejected the claim
that their firms aim for speed and quality over procedural management, while 63.3% rejected
the informal performance monitoring framework as superior to a more formal PEF. In the
same vein, half reported that their firms do not actually invest in employee training or
Continuous Professional Development (CPD).
Relative Importance of PEF in Road Construction
The survey respondents ranked 15 of those possible factors according to their relative
importance in performance benefits gained through PEF-based organisational monitoring.
Table 1 shows that PEF benefits result in positive impacts on time from design to completion
(1.50), the reduction of time overruns and project consequences (1.57), and the reduction of
cost overruns and unforeseen risks (1.67).
Table 1: Relative importance of PEF benefits to organisational monitoring
Time from design to completion 1.50
Time overruns and project consequences 1.57
Cost overruns and unforeseen risks 1.67
Communication and team cohesion 1.80
Site controls and record keeping 2.10
Per unit costs of materials 2.20
Managerial oversight and decision making performance 2.23
Structural integrity and resilience 2.30
Energy consumption during manufacturing 2.36
Environmental impact and CO2 emissions 2.40
General quality of the outputs 2.43
End user satisfaction 2.63
Accident rate during build 2.82
Information controls and system monitoring 2.90
Construction team satisfaction 3.23
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Computation of the Success Index,
The mean value, R for each of the 15 CPM factors was computed and the corresponding
values determined. Also, the values of and were calculated and included in table 2.
Specifically, the mean rank R, was calculated using equation 2 where N was substituted with
30 and 3 for and α. From equation 2, the value of the success index was obtained through
multiplication of attributes α and for a given CPM factor. Considering the initial relative
importance ranking, and comparing it with above results based on the success index, a
significant change was observed. This implies that the one dimensional approach may lead to
poor results, since some important attributes are left out during analysis.
Table 2: Probability and impact of various CPM factors on project success
CPM factor Mean Rank
Resource availability and general ease of access 1.63 0.67 1 0.67 1
Adequacy of trained labor force 1.63 0.67 1 0.67 1
Quality of materials and/or products 1.9 0.62 1 0.62 2
Poor managerial oversights and decision making 2.03 0.59 1 0.59 3
Government pay delays for parcel release 2.1 0.58 1 0.58 4
Design changes and adaptations during construction 1.73 0.65 0.83 0.54 5
Poor quality workmanship and finishing 1.73 0.65 0.67 0.44 6
Transport system deficiencies or lack of
infrastructure
2.1 0.58 0.67 0.39 8
Time deficiencies or inaccurate prediction overruns 2.67 0.47 0.83 0.39 8
Material cost overruns and inconsistencies 2.07 0.59 0.5 0.3 9
General cost overruns due to multiple factors 1.67 0.67 0.37 0.25 10
Unforeseen or unpredicted risks 1.73 0.65 0.37 0.24 11
Site inconsistencies and ecological factors 3.27 0.35 0.37 0.13 12
Environmental performance deficiencies and impacts 3.13 0.37 0.1 0.04 15
Social demands and regional complications 3.03 0.39 0.1 0.04 15
From the results, it can be seen that availability of resources is obtained from the analysis to
have the highest impact on project success with success index of 0.67 followed closely by
inadequacy of trained labour force (0.62) and the least were site inconsistencies and
ecological factors (0.04), Environmental performance deficiencies and impacts (0.04) and
Social demands and regional complications (0.04). It could be observed from the results that
the introduction of impact and probability in the assessment of the success factors lead to an
improvement in the ranks as suggested by Shen et al (2001) and Shen and Liu (2003).
Project Evaluation Framework
Figure1 presents framework developed in this study for assessing critical success factors in
road infrastructure projects. The evaluation framework developed depends on experts‘
opinions, judgment and solutions from the results of the survey. Although, the probabilistic
processes used to determine the success indices for various CPM factors assists the processes
of judgement and solution development, expert judgment was very strategic.
The framework consists of five stages, executed systematically from identification of CPM
factors to development of mitigation measures. Although, there are numerous factors that
affect the performance of road infrastructure projects in Nigeria, the necessary mitigation
measures require a well-developed scale from which the weight of each factor can be
assessed and the required resources allocated to enhance solution development. This is
consistent with Aibinu and Odeyinka (2006), that project performance in the construction
industry is mainly affected by factors that need positive control and monitoring. As such,
209
feasible control and monitoring measures should be developed in order to ensure that each of
the identified factors remain within the required range based on project requirements.
Figure1. Framework for assessing critical success factors in road infrastructure Projects
Conclusions and Recommendations It could be concluded that in most construction firms, performance monitoring is based upon
project outcomes, not the processes which facilitate those outcomes. Most firms require
Experts’ judgement
Road infrastructure
performance
Environmenta
l CPM factors
Decision making, Quality of services,
products and materials, Risk management,
Workmanship, Coordination,
End user satisfaction
Adequacy of trained labour,
Design changes, Transport system
deficiencies, State and availability of
infrastructure, Resource availability,
Safety features
Site consistency and Adherence to environmental
policies
Social demands,
Regional requirements and
End user needs
Consistency of material cost,
Government pay delays for parcel release,
Cost overrun due to multiple factors
Financial CPM
factors
factors
Management
CPM factors
factors
Technical
CPM factors
factors
Social CPM
factors
factors
Expert judgement
Success probability factor (β)
Impact factor (α)
Success Index (𝛈)
Mitigation Measures
Exp
erts’
Idea
s
Exp
erts’
Idea
s
Experts’
Judgemen
t
A A
A
B
C
B
B
B
B
C
C
C
C
E E
F
D
D
210
improved information and knowledge management. More so, core deficiencies in technical,
human, and physical resources contribute to fragmented performance monitoring, an outcome
which may result in constraints over the long term. Although, it was the general opinion of
the respondents that performance evaluation outcomes should be shared with the entire
construction team, however, most of the firms do not allow participation in decision making
processes. This finding is particularly important in light of the requirements of a
comprehensive, participative PEF within such a complex industry as Civil Engineering
Construction.
There is need for adequate resources and properly trained labour to be made available from
inception as these have the highest impacts on project success. The work was able to
demonstrate that in determining the critical success factors, the impact and probability of
occurrence play very crucial role rather than merely depending on just mean score for
ranking. This provided a basis for the development of a framework in this study which is
recommended for carrying out the assessment of critical success factors for road projects in
Abuja in order to ensure timely and optimal delivery of such projects.
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Direct and indirect causes of rework and their impact AO Aiyetan
Department of Built Environment,
Central University of Technology, Free State, South Africa
Abstract:
Rework, the doing of work at least one more time due to non-conformance to specification
could be caused by direct and indirect factors. Rework could arise as a result of changes from
client, construction errors and other wise. Rework are detrimental, therefore actions necessary
to reduce their effect should be sort at all times. The aim of the study is to identify causes of
rework associated to direct and indirect factors with a view to mitigating their impact. The
study was conducted in Lagos, Nigeria. The sampling frame consisted of architects, builders,
quantity surveyors, and engineers. Random sampling technique was used in the selection of
samples. A total of 63 samples representing the respondents were used for the data analysis.
Descriptive statistics was employed for the analysis of data. Findings include that poor
management, lack of supervision and coordination in construction and omission from
specification are the direct causes of rework and the main factor of indirect causes of rework
is lack of qualified staff. Conclusion include that these causes of rework result in cost and
time increases and ultimately affects contract quality level. Therefore, it is recommended that
good construction method and coordination should be used during construction, at the
construction stage, supervision of work must be thorough, and adequate information and
communication should be ensured.
Keywords: Construction, Rework, Nigeria
Introduction
The Construction Industry plays a very important role in any nation‘s economy. It involves
dealing with stakeholders in the Construction Industry with different interest and influence on
a project, which may lead to changes / variations. Alwi (2002) and Josephson (2002) declare
that rework is considered as a non-value adding endemic symptom that seriously affect
performance and productivity aspects in construction project. Rework on projects is a direct
result of poor quality of resource factors that a component is compounded with, with consent
(cutting corners to save money or workers cheating on contractors) or without it. Rework is
an endemic feature that constitutes to time and cost overruns on projects. The primary
sources of rework in construction are largely from design changes, errors and omission
(Love,1999). An inappropriate selection process may lead to selecting a bad contractor,
which lead to problems relative to delivery and culminate in disputes between client and
contractor, waste of resources and probably abandonment of project. Rework can also occur
as a result of substandard product or poor quality of materials emanating from the
subcontractor. Love (1997) identified that poor workmanship that accounts for about 1.5% of
the total cost of rework in building projects can lead to client dissatisfaction. The tastes of
client in the construction industry are becoming high, so are the construction methods
becoming complex and dynamic. In order to improve quality of construction products in
Lagos state, Nigeria, a study of direct and indirect causes of rework was initiated.
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Literature Review
Direct Rework Causes
The direct rework causes are those occurrences that will lead to rework, such as, poor
workmanship, poor supervision, poor quality material, deviations from drawings, and errors
and omissions in drawings.
Poor workmanship
Dissatisfaction of client, consultants and probably the contractor as a result of the final state
of components and products could be traceable to poor workmanship these manifest as
defects (Wai Kiong and Sui Pheng, 2005). These can bring objectives of projects not to be
accomplished, customers‘ needs are not satisfied and specifications not achieved. Poor
workmanship could be as a result of quality related events, lack of skill, lack of knowledge,
carelessness, hard to build and unclear project information. Factors that contribute to poor
workmanship are, poor project management (Dai et al. 2009; Jha and Chockalingam, 2009),
complicated role of subcontractor (Khalid et al. 2006 Chan et al. 2006), lack experience and
competency of labours (Kazaz and Birgonul 2005), language barrier to communication and
lack of communication (Augusto et al., 2009), unsuitable construction equipment (Kazaz and
Birgonul, 2005), poor weather condition (Dai et al., 2009), and limited time and cost.
Poor supervision
Commitment and being focus is required for adequate supervision. Carelessness and a lack of
focus result in poor supervision and cause great consequences, such as, fatal accident (Bomel,
2003). Inappropriately low levels of supervision and guidance to workers, which was
perceived to be more a result of heavy workloads rather than an overt neglect of
responsibility, particularly across the hazardous industries result in the aforesaid. Factors that
contribute to insufficient supervision include: lack of supervision and coordination in
construction; lack of assessment of workers performance; lack of training for work;
inadequate report production; lack of personnel, and lack of creating method to fulfill work
schedule requirement.
Deviation from drawing
Deviation from drawings refers to the non-compliance to project drawings, whether contract
plans or approved shop drawings. Work not executed as per drawings should be rectified and
redone. Omissions and errors on drawings should be rectified before executing them. Factors
contributing to deviation from drawings leading to rework are: omission from specification;
non-adherence to specification; and inadequate information (Acharya et al., 2006).
Indirect Rework Causes
Indirect rework causes refer to occurrences that create the situations resulting in rework.
These consist of improper subcontractor selection, improper work protection, lack of
coordination, and improper work sequencing.
Improper subcontractor
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Inappropriate selection of subcontractors may be detrimental to the overall performance of a
project. For the general contractor to select the most appropriate subcontractor, the contractor
should consider the subcontractor's financial and technical capabilities. The selection of an
incompetent subcontractor may warrant the production of poor quality workmanship
requiring rework.
Improper work protection
Construction activities are affected by weather. Since construction activities are carried out in
the open, they are susceptible to prevailing weather conditions. This adverse weather
conditions are rain and extreme heat. The lack of protection of work after construction could
damage product. Rain will damage the surface of concrete and weaken it strength when not
protected.
Lack of coordination
Coordination will affect effective coordination of resources with respect to materials in stock,
materials needed and ordering dates. Together these will ensure a smooth flow of activity and
timely delivery of the project. Jha and Iyer (2005) maintain that coordination among project
participants and resources positively influence the delivery of projects. The lack of
coordination could lead to mistakes, activities done at the wrong time and cause rework.
Improper work sequencing
Improper work sequencing causes work not to be done in chronological order. For example,
the casting of upper floor concrete without lying of electrical pipes. This will lead to rework.
Approval should be sort at all stages of construction activities. This will afford adequate
inspection of work and identification of errors before executing the work and eliminate
rework.
Effect of Delay
Delay has multiplying effect and adverse effects on a project. Aibinu and Jagboro (2002),
Sambasivan and Yau (2007); Odeh and Battaineh (2002); Othman et al. (2006) and Sun and
Meng (2009) identified the effects of delay on projects to include : cost overrun; extension of
time (EOT); late payment Nichol (2008) and Still (2000); rescheduling Vieira et al. (2003)
and Liu and Shih (2009); affect company reputation Djordjevic and Djukic (2008) and Ismail
et al. (2006); lost productivity and efficiency McDonald and Zack (2004), and loss of
materials Rodriguez and Bowers (1996).
Research Methodology
The study aims to assess direct and indirect factor causing rework on construction projects.
The study was conducted in the Western part of Nigeria among registered professional
members of the various professions in the Building Construction Industry in Lagos State. The
sample frame consists of architects (100), quantity surveyors (82) and builders (88). They
were accessed through their various professional bodies in Lagos. The sample sizes are:
architect (85), builders (72) and quantity surveyors (68). The random sampling technique was
used for the selection of samples. Questionnaire survey was conducted. Questionnaires were
administered via post. Twenty eight percent (28%) response rate was achieved. Descriptive
215
statistics is employed for the analysis of data. Respondents with Higher National Diploma
(HND) (26%) predominate, followed by B.Tech (30.3%). All of the respondents are
registered with their professional bodies. Respondents with years of experience above six
years (84.2%) were surveyed. Respondents‘ organisations have being involved with over 21
projects on the average. Standard deviation is used to enable ranking of factors with the same
mean score.
Findings and Discussion
Table 1 presents the respondent, perceptions with respect to the factors related to direct
causes of rework on construction projects in terms of a mean score (MS) ranging between
1.00 and 5.00, based upon percentage responses to a scale of 1 (Minor) and 5 (Major). It is
notable that all the factors have MSs are > 2.50 which indicates that the factors have
moderate to a major influence in directly causing rework. The Table has three sub divisions
namely, poor workmanship, insufficient supervision, and deviation from drawing. From the
section poor workmanship, the factor ranked first with the most influence poor management
(MS=4.03). Work are specified to certain standard, when this standard are not achieved, there
is the tendency for it to be condemned and should be done again. It should be noted that all
kind of work has steps to follow in carrying them out. If these steps are not followed,
mistakes could arise and lead to poor workmanship.
Table 1: Direct rework causes
Direct Factors MS Rank
Poor workmanship
Poor management 4.03 1
Lack of communication and language barrier 3.98 2
Complicated role of subcontractor 3.82 3
Lack of experience and competency of labour 3.82 4
Unavailability of construction equipment 3.79 5
Inadequate cost 3.74 6
Inadequate time 3.58 7
Poor weather condition 1.96 8
Poor supervision
Lack of supervision and coordination in construction 3.84 1
Lack of assessment of workers performance 3.71 2
Lack of training for work 3.71 3
Inadequate report production 3.71 4
Lack of personnel 3.68 5
Lack of creating method to fulfill work schedule requirement 3.65 6
Deviation from drawing
Omission from specification 4.06 1
Non adherence from specification 4.03 2
Inadequate information leading to wrong construction 3.42 3
Using dimension of building set out 2.74 4
Next is lack of communication and language barrier with an MS=3.98 are ranked second
regarding direct causes of rework. In order for instructions to be carried out as intended there
must be a two-way communication. The instance that communication is one way and
probably with barriers, instructions may be carried out with mistakes and lead to rework. The
factor with the least influence is poor weather conditions (MS=1.96). This implies that
construction works are probably carried out when period is favourable (dry seasons). From
the insufficient supervision, the factor, which causes rework most and ranked first is lack of
supervision and coordination of construction activities (MS=3.84). This leaves room for
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workers to carry out work as they wish, and may be with lots of mistakes. Supervision must
be adequate and regular to avoid rework. Next in this section is lack of assessment of workers
performance (MS=3.71). Worker capabilities need to be ascertained to know the kind of
supervision to be given relative to doing work correctly. The non-giving attention to this may
be the likely reason for rework on projects. The least factor influencing rework in this section
is lack of creating methods to fulfill work schedule requirements (MS=3.65).
It should be noted that though this factor is least among origins of rework, in this section it
has a high MS. This suggests that it may have significant effect. From the section, deviation
from drawing, omission from specification (MS=4.06) is ranked first as having the most
influence regarding causes of rework. Dimensions need to be accurate relative to building
being square or rectangular. Omissions leads to time wastages and materials as work may
have being carried out incorrectly. Next is non-adherence to specification (MS=4.03). The
non-adherence to specification results in doing the wrong thing, and leads to rework.
Table 2 indicates the respondents‟ perceptions with respect to the factors causing indirect
rework on construction projects in terms of a mean score (MS) ranging between 1.00 and
5.00, based upon percentage responses to a scale of 1 (Minor) and 5 (Major). It is worth
noting that all factors of indirect causes of rework have MSs are > 4.00 which indicates that
the factors are more a major than a minor causes of indirect rework. This is a clear indication
that the factors irrespective of their ranking have great potential to influence rework on
projects. Improper subcontractor (MS=4.21) rank first among factors of indirect causes of
rework. The wrong selection of subcontractor as a result of improper selection process could
be the main cause of this factor. The non-adherence to proper contract tendering and award
process results in the selection of lack of competent subcontractor. The same applies to the
selection of the main contractor. These result in poor quality of work done requiring rework.
During the selection process, factors such as, technical capability, plant and equipment,
experience, qualifications of staff, and financial capabilities should be factor given high
weights for consideration. Next to improper subcontractor is lack of coordination
(MS=4.15). Inadequate coordination of construction activities could lead to carrying out
activities at the wrong time, inadequate monitoring of activities could lead to poor work and
all of these contribute to rework. The least factor of indirect causes of rework is improper
work sequencing (MS=4.10). There are critical activities in the construction of a building
project. The non-identification of these activities and executing them in a chronological order
could lead to rework.
Table 2: Indirect rework causes
Indirect Factors MS Rank
Improper subcontractor 4.21 1
Lack of coordination 4.15 2
Improper work protection of ducts or pipes 4.13 3
Improper work sequencing 4.10 4
Table 3 reveals respondents‟ perceptions with respect to the elements (areas) of building
prone to rework on construction projects in terms of a mean score (MS) ranging between 1.00
and 5.00, based upon percentage responses to a scale of 1 (Minor) and 5 (Major). It is worth
noting, that all the factors have MSs are > 2.50 which indicates that the level occurrence of
rework from these elements are of moderate to a major extent. The first top three elements
are walls, window and foundation (substructure work), which have MSs of 4.65, 3.31 and
3.16 respectively. Wall need to adequately form, and blocks lay perfectly. Then follows
217
plastering on wall, which firstly requires gauging of the entire surface before actual plastering
commences to eliminate undulation. Adequate time and sufficient water applied during
construction to avoid cracks. Windows requires being vertical and fixed in the right position,
failure of this leads to rework. Foundation involves a lot of work. It begins from setting out.
A wrong setting out will reflect at the foundation. Care should be taken not to miss any line
of wall for excavation and the building must be setting out rightly. Any mistake during this
process is manifest at the foundation level and must be redone. The least elements of prone to
rework are slab (MS=2.37) and stair case (MS=2.31) though rework is not common
occurrence with these elements, care should be taken while constructing them as they have
potentials to influence rework.
Table 3: Element of building prone to rework
Element MS Rank
Wall 4.65 1
Window 3.31 2
Foundation 3.16 3
Electrical services 3.03 4
Column 2.66 5
Beam 2.63 6
Roof 2.63 7
Door 2.56 8
Mechanical services 2.44 9
Slab 2.37 10
Stair case 2.31 11
Table 4 presents the respondents‘ perceptions with respect to impact of rework on
construction projects in terms of a mean score (MS) ranging between 1.00 and 5.00, based
upon percentage responses to a scale of 1 (Minor) and 5 (Major). All factors have MSs >
3.00, which indicates that the factors are a major than a minor impact on rework. Cost
overrun (MS=3.94) rank first among the factors. Rework will require new materials, plant
and equipment being hired and labour. These are the items that increase the cost figure of the
project. In addition, another time (time overrun (MS=3.87)) is required to execute the work,
and it is the second ranked factor regarding the impact of rework. Negative effect on
company‘s reputation (MS=3.85) is ranked third factor. The company is seen in the light of
not competent, and having not enough experience to handle Building construction, which also
negative affects it competitive advantages. The factor with the least impact on rework is loss
of materials (MS=3.42). It is very obvious that when rework occurs, materials are removed
and replacement follows. In this process materials are lost.
Table 4: Impact of rework
Effect MS Rank
Cost overrun 3.94 1
Time overrun 3.87 2
Negatively affects company reputation 3.85 3
Rescheduling 3.84 4
Late payment 3.77 5
Loss of productivity and efficiency 3.60 6
Loss of material 3.42 7
Conclusions and Recommendations
218
Poor management, lack of supervision and coordination in construction projects, omission
from specification are the major factors causing direct rework. Improper contractor and
subcontractor selection is mainly the indirect factors responsible for rework. These direct and
indirect causes of rework are thus context specific to the study area. Cost and time overruns
and negative effect on company‘s reputation are the factors with the most impact on projects.
From the foregoing, it can be concluded that adequate attention be given to management of
the processes of construction, and adherence to specification.
The impact of rework is enormous, rework reduces the profitability level of contractor and
subcontractors and it could lead to improper processes and poor quality of work. Most
importantly, it reduces the competitive advantage of contractor. Based on the conclusions, the
following recommendations are made:
Contractors and suncontractors should evolve good management system and commit to it
in order to mitigate poor quality product;
Adequate supervision should be given to the processes of construction at all levels to
mitigate mistakes and poor workmanship that will result in rework, and
The tendering process should be employed and followed in the selection of contractors
and subcontractors to mitigate the selection of incompetent contractor and subcontractor.
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220
An evaluation of the physical conditions of on-campus
students’ hostel blocks in a public Nigerian university AD Adamu and WM Shakantu
Department of Construction Management,
Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, South Africa
Abstract:
Ensuring that students‘ hostels are in best functional condition supports learning activities.
Knowledge of the physical condition of hostel facilities is a key performance indicator of the
maintenance strategies put in place by the building management department of the institution.
This paper presents the current condition of on-campus students‘ hostel blocks in a typical
public university in Nigeria. It is an aspect of ongoing research on the maintenance
management of on-campus hostels at Nigerian universities. Data was generated through
observations of the interior structural conditions of the students‘ rooms. Most (over 80%) of
the students‘ bedroom in the hostels have major defects on the interior facades which are
unfavourable for living and learning, a prime objective of providing and maintaining
students‘ hostels on campus. The findings of the study revealed the deteriorated, unhealthy
and unsafe condition of the male hostels. The study suggests a research into the maintenance
management strategies of the existing on-campus hostels in the university, with an aim of
identifying the factors inhibiting effective maintenance of the building that will align with the
primary objective of which the providing the hostels on campus.
Keywords:
Building, hostel, maintenance, university
Introduction
On-campus hostels are custom-made residences for students on sites of educational
institutions with a prime objective of providing a living-learning environment that will enable
social interaction, notwithstanding the differences in home background of the students (Najib
& Osman, 2011). In most Nigeria universities, it is a tradition to accommodate students in
hostels provided on their campuses. These hostels are integral components of the various
institutions‘ built asset. According to Araujo & Murray (2010) accommodation facilities on
campus of academic institutions affords the students that reside in the available on-campus
hostels security for their lives and properties. Secondly, the rental fees of the
accommodations provided by the institutions are normally affordable for most students
because the managements of such institutions are primarily interested in the welfare of their
students, which will enable the students focus on their academic activities.
The conditions of buildings are key indicators of development and the quality of life in a
community, because the prosperity, social values and behaviours are reflected in them
(Akinsola et al., 2012). Users / occupants of buildings may have simple or complex
requirements, but the building is expected to meet most of these requirements (Idrus et al.,
2009), because, the well-being of buildings is not only important for their economic life
expectancy but is even more important for the well-being of the occupants/users (Iyagba,
2005). In line with this, maintaining buildings is an optimum initiative and intervention for
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preserving and supporting the values of the built environment and the citizens (Dann et al.,
2005; Idrus et al., 2009).
Since the early 1990s, the management of the hostel buildings in public universities in
Nigeria has become more complicated due to a continuous increase in the intake of students
with every session (Akingbohungbe & Akinluyi, 2012; Ojedokun et al., 2012). This is despite
an increase in the number of both public and private universities established to date.
Deteriorating conditions in the physical conditions of students‘ hostels on the campuses of
some institutions in Nigeria may be blamed for poor academic performance coupled with
social problem such as student unrest, poor health poor academic and other negative
behavioural patterns that are found in disadvantaged communities (Jolaoso et al., 2012).
Literature Review
The buildings are fabricated structure composed of several discrete but interrelated
components (McDuling, 2004; Adenuga, 2010). The building system derives its form and
utility from two major components: the building shell and building services (Odediran et al.,
2012). The building shell includes all architectural and structural components comprising of
all exterior coverings of the building (façade or envelope) that shield the interior from harsh
weather, pollution, it also provides thermal and sound Insulations.
The basic function of a building is to provide structurally sound, safe and environmentally
controlled places to accommodate various human functions (Idrus et al., 2009; Adenuga,
2010; Abdul Lateef et al., 2011; Waziri & Vanduhe, 2013). For the building to serve its
designed function, it must meet certain qualities of durability, reliability, aesthetics with other
occupants/user requirements (Abdul Lateef et al., 2011). Changes in these qualities are
inevitable and depend on the impact levels of operational and physical environmental factors
(Abbott et al., 2007). The impacts of these factors cause the building to deteriorate and
threaten the ability of the incorporated facilities to retain functionality through their service
lives (Waziri & Vanduhe, 2013). In addition, the building suffers performance loss and the
objective of acquiring the facility is defeated (Straub, 2009).
Deterioration and defects in building components
A defect is any shortcoming in the functional performance, statutory or basic user
requirements of a building that manifest itself within the structure, fabric, services or other
parts of the built facility (Mohamad & Annuar, 2011). Therefore, a building component that
fails to meet its accepted or set criteria for performance may be referred to as a defective
component (Mydin, Ramli & Awang, 2012). Defects in a building component are in various
forms (depending on the cause) and the severity of damage to the component. Minor, serious
and critical are the three categories of which defects in a building element may be classified
(Abbott et al., 2007). The remedial action required to minimise the impact of any defect on
the building performance is typically ranked according to a predetermined set of priorities for
maintenance and the severity of damage caused by the defect.
The aggregate life span of the components of a building is a major determinant of its life
expectancy (Adenuga et al., 2010). The life span of each component depends largely on
specification and installation on the construction phase; compatibility of the components
with each other and with other materials; operation/use of the facilities and adequacy of
maintenance standard complied. The performance of whole building depends on many
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factors such as type of structure and incorporated services, environmental conditions and use
of the facility (Chautan & Singh, 2012). All building components have to contend with
performance loss through ageing, use, and external causes. Performance loss is measured in
terms of defects ascertained (Straub, 2009). According to Talib et al. (2012), building
performance is concerned with the extent to which the building facilitates or support use or
occupancy; the extent to which it serves as a comfortable abode and support a better quality
of life for the occupants and the building‘s fitness for designed. The quality of a building in
the context of building performance is a measure of the quality of material used and
workmanship of the initial construction and subsequent maintenance works; its operation and
use (McDuling et al., 2004).
Research Methodology
This paper is part of an on-going research on the maintenance management systems of on-
campus students‘ hostels at Nigerian universities. The paper aimed at addressing one of the
objectives of the parent research work which is to examine the current condition of on-
campus hostel buildings at selected universities in Nigeria. This paper is based on the results
of a pilot survey carried out to test the condition assessment instrument developed to generate
data the objective afore mention of the main research work that is still in its developmental
stage. This research employed the qualitative method that is rooted in the phenomenological
paradigm. It integrates a literature review and a case study. The literature review provides an
understanding of the building component, function and performance requirements. The case
study approach of the qualitative method was adopted because it is appropriate for in-depth
study of a case or cases. Sources of data for the literature search include relevant periodicals,
conference papers, textbooks, dissertations and theses from research institutions, with the aid
of library reference services. Data for the case study was generated through physical
observations of the interior structural elements of the hostel rooms. A condition evaluation
form was prepared for this exercise guided by a building condition evaluation manual
(Bergeson & Bigelow, 1992).
The elements were inspected and the current condition was rated on a five point scale. The
components with no sign of defect and their appearance is as new were rated ―5 - excellent‖.
The value ―4 - satisfactory‖ was assigned to components that show negligible signs of defects
that may not constitute any form of discomfort to the student occupants in the room. An
average value ―3 - fair‖ was assigned to any component observed to exhibit defects such as
worn-out finishing, minor defects such as cracks or dampness that are not related to structural
defects, but require uplift for aesthetic purpose and comfort for the occupants. All
components with early signs of major defects such as structural cracks, water seepage,
leakages that require urgent maintenance works to save the structure were regarded as poor
and rated ―2‖. The least rate ―1-unsuitable‖ was assigned to rooms with critical defects in the
components evaluated. The components in this category include those with major structural
defects that have reached an advanced stage, as a result of which the room is completely
unsafe for occupants.
An Overview of the case study area
The university used as a case study of this research paper is a typical Federal university that
has already been selected as one of the universities that will be studied in the main ongoing
research mentioned in the previous section. The institution operates two campuses within the
223
same city, barely 14kilometers between the two campuses. As integral part of the university‘s
built assets, are hostel buildings for both male and female students on each campus. The
majority of the students reside on and around the main campus because most academic
departments have been relocated to the main campus. This paper assessed only the two hostel
blocks for the male students on the main campus because the primary purpose of the exercise
is for a trial survey of the research instrument that would be used a PhD research work in
progress. The researchers‘ choice of the male hostels is for proximity and easily accessible
for the pilot survey exercise. The university used as case study is a fully owned by the
Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN). It is a university of Technology established in 1983
and located in the North central geopolitical of Nigeria. The objective of its establishment
alongside 6 others across the country is for human capital development that will boost the
science and technology sector in the country to meet world standards.
Findings and discussions
The study presented in this paper aimed at evaluating the conditions of the interior facades of
the bedrooms in two hostel blocks on the campus of a public university in Nigeria. Ceilings,
walls and floors in 164 students‘ rooms were evaluated. The hostel buildings are identical
storey blocks located adjacent to each other. There are 82 shared bedrooms on three floors in
each block. The floor designs are corridor types with common bathrooms and toilets located
on one end of the corridor on each floor; kitchens and laundry rooms at opposite ends of the
corridors. For the purpose of this paper, survey result of only the ceilings, floors and walls in
each room is presented based on physical inspection with the aid of prepared survey forms
for each of the elements which has been described in section 3. Table 1 presents the result of
the condition evaluation of the three elements afore mentioned. Physical inspection of all the
bedroom spaces of the two hostel blocks was carried out and the rating is presented in
percentages in the table.
The result of the evaluation revealed that none of the three components in all the bedrooms
inspected were rated ―5-excellent‖ and only 9% of the rooms had floors that were rated ―4-
satisfactory. However, only 12% of the rooms were rated ―1-unsuitable‖ and categorised as
unsafe for occupants due to the severity of deteriorated components observed. Ceilings in
60% of the rooms, examined are rated ―2-Poor‖ signifying that the ceilings have major
structural defects such as, sagging panels, evident signs of leakage from roofs which is not a
conducive living learning accommodation for a student occupant. Substantial percentages
(64%) of both the floors and walls in the rooms are in a fairly (rated 3-fair) habitable
condition to accommodate students.
Table 1: Condition rating of building components
Components
Percentage of rooms
Excellent……………….…… Unsuitable
Total
5 4 3 2 1
Ceilings 0 0 16 60 24 100
Floors 0 9 64 21 6 100
Walls 0 0 64 29 7 100
Conclusions and Further Research
Most of the students‘ bedroom in the hostels has major defects on the interior facades which
are unfavourable for living and learning, a prime objective of providing and maintaining
224
students‘ hostels on campus. The findings of the study revealed the deteriorated, unhealthy
and unsafe condition of the male hostels, which confirms and clarifies an aspect of the
research problem of the parent study that aims at providing a base level understanding of
maintenance management systems of on-campus hostel buildings at Nigerian universities.
The study suggests a research into the maintenance management strategies of the existing
on-campus hostels in the university, with an aim of identifying the factors inhibiting effective
maintenance of the building that will align with the primary objective of which the providing
the hostels on campus.
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assessment: A performance evaluation tool towards sustainable asset management.
Cape town, CIB World Congress.
Abdul Lateef, O., Khamidi, M. & Idrus, A. 2011. Behavioural Issues in Maintenance of
University Buildings. Journal of Retail and Leisure property, 9(5), pp. 415-428.
Adenuga, O. 2010. Labour Composition for Maintenance Works in Public Hospital
Built environment in South-West Nigeria. Journal of Building Performance, 1(1),
pp. 83-94.
Akingbohungbe, D. & Akinluyi, M. 2012. Residents' Perception of Off-campus
Students' Housing Performance in Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Journal of Environment and
Earth Science, 2(7), pp. 69-77.
Akinsola, O., Hussaini, P. & Oyenuga, S. 2012. Critical Factors Influencing Facility
Maintenance of Tertiary Institutional Buildings in Southwest Nigeria. Mediteranean
Journal of Social Sciences, 3(11), pp. 489-496.
Araujo, P. & Murray, J. 2010. Channels for Improved Performance from Living on
Campus. American Journal of Business Education, 5(12), pp. 57-64.
Bergeson, T. & Bigelow, M. 1992. Building Condition Evaluation Manual,
Washington, DC: Schools facilities and Organization, State Board of Education,
Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Chautan, M. & Singh, P. 2012. Building Deteriorating Fungi as Biocontaminant. Asian
Journal of Experimental Biological Sciences, 3(1), pp. 209-213.
Dann, N., Hills, S. & Worthing, D. 2006. Assessing how Organisations Approach the
Maintenance Management of Listed Buildings. Construction Management and
Economics, 24(1), pp. 97-104.
Idrus, A., Khamidi, F. & Abdul Lateef, A. 2009. Value-Based Maintenance
Management Model for University Buildings in Malaysia. Journal of Sustainable
Development, 2(3), pp. 127-133.
Iyagba, R., 2005. The Menance of Sick Buildings: A Challenge to all for its Prevention
and Treatment. Lagos: University of Lagos press.
Jolaoso, B., Musa, N. & Oriola, O. 2012. Appraisal of the Maintenance of Public
Residential Estates in Ogun State: Case Study of Ibara Housing Estate, Abeokuta.
Journal of Emerging Trends in Economics and Maintenance Sciences, 3(5), pp.
509-516.
Najib, N. & Osman, Z. 2011. The relationship between Students‘ Socio-Economic
Backgrounds and Students‘ Residential Satisfaction. World Academy of Science,
Engineering and Technology, 56, pp. 1200-1205.
Mc Duling, J., Harok, E. & Cloete, C. 2004. Quantifying the Consequences of
Maintenance Budget Cuts. Cape Town, ICEC World Congress.
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Defect and Deterioration of Building Structures. International Seminar on the
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Application of Science and Mathematics conference. 1st-3
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Lumpur, Malaysia.
Mydin, M.O., Ramli, M. & Awang, H. 2012. Factors of Deterioration in Building and the
Principles of Repair. Analele Universitatll ― Eftimie Murgu‖ Resita, 19(1), pp. 345-
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Odediran, S., Opatunji, O. & Eghenure, F. 2012. Maintenance of Residential Buildings:
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Straub, A., 2009. Dutch standard for condition assessment of buildings. Structural
Survey, 27(1), pp. 23-35.
Talib, Y., Rajagopalan, P. & Yang, R. 2013. Evaluation of Building Performance for
Strategic Facilities Management in Healthcare: A case study of a public hospital in
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Waziri, B. & Vanduhe, B. 2013. Evaluation of Factors Affecting Residential Building
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3(8), pp. 19-24.
226
Construction risk management through the use of
Contractors’ All Risk (CAR) insurance policy: A South
African case study S Musundire, CO Aigbavboa
and WD Thwala
Department of Construction Management & Quantity Surveying,
University of Johannesburg, South Africa
Abstract:
Contractors‘ All Risks (CAR) insurance is special insurance cover, which insures all losses
unless specifically excluded in a construction contract. The benefit to the insured under this
type of policy is that the burden is shifted to the insurer who, to resist the claim, is required to
show that the cause of the loss falls within specifies perils. The objective of the current
research study is to identify the factors that affect the use of CAR in mitigating construction
risk and to determine the factors which affect the use of CAR insurance policy in South
Africa. The data for the study were derived from both primary and secondary sources. The
secondary data were derived from the review of literature, while the primary data for the
study were collected through a structured questionnaire survey distributed to a sample of 30
professionals/ specialists in the construction industry including contracting firms who had
taken CAR insurance and are currently using CAR in mitigating construction risk. Findings
from the study revealed that the factors which affect the use of CAR insurance policy in the
South Africa construction industry include: stipulation of the adopted conditions of standard
construction contract, client‘s requirement, cost and contractor‘s own interest. Good claim
around time, quality of services and insurer‘s reputation were the most significant factors
affecting the choice of an insurer. Economic potential of the insurance company, reinsurance
and wordings of the policy were some of the factors which influence the choice of the insurer
under CAR.The study adds to the body of knowledge on the use of CAR in the management
of construction risk in the South Africa construction industry.
Keywords:
Contractors, Contractors‘All Risk (CAR), Risk Management, Insurance
Introduction
Construction projects are sensitive to extremely large matrix of hazards and thus to risks.
This sensitivity is due to some inherent characteristics of construction projects (Bunni, 2003).
Risk in construction projects has been the object of attention mainly because of its association
to time and cost overruns. Perera et al. (2008) argues that transferring risks to an insurance
policy is an accepted method world-wide. They also state that among the insurance policies
used in construction, Contractors‘ All Risk (CAR) policy is the most popular. Concurring to
the work of Perera et al. (2008), Pankaj et al. (2013) informed that construction insurance is a
major method of managing risks in the construction industry. Furthermore, Pankaj et al.
(2013) states that CAR‘s primary function is to transfer certain risks from clients, contractors,
subcontractors and other parties involved in the construction project to provide contingent
funding in times of difficulty. However, CAR sometimes does not receive the attention it
227
desires because practitioners do not have a clear understanding of risk allocation and the
strategy of risk management through insurance. To this end, the current study identifies the
factors that affect the use of CAR in mitigating construction risk and to determine the factors
which affect the use of CAR insurance policy in the South Africa construction indistry, using
the Gauteng Province as a case study.
Risk Management in Construction
According to Perera et al. (2008), the development of a construction project from inception to
completion takes a long time and involves many phases. It brings workers with different
skills and interest together; needs an efficient procurement system and involves the use of
large and diverse sets of equipment. Perera et al. (2008) further informs that all of these
complex requirements have to be handled with proper coordination to provide a smooth flow
of activities. Hence, this brings the necessity to identify and analyse the risks that may appear
during construction. Chihuri and Pretorious (2010) explain the need for risk management in
the South Africa construction industry by citing the Gautrain and 2010 soccer stadiums as
typical examples. Due to the size of the development, Chihuri and Pretorious (2010) gave the
following reasons to emphasize on the need for risk management in construction projects
based on the above examples in South Africa, these reasons include:
Size implies that there may be large potential losses unless they are managed carefully-
and conversely, large potential gains if risks are managed well. Supported by a famous
Chinese ancient philosopher cited by (Liu et al., 2005);stating that: ―if risks cannot be
dealt with properly, opportunities can be transferred to loss‖ while treating risks correctly,
turns threats can into opportunities;
Large projects often involve unbalanced cash flows, requiring large initial investments
before meaningful returns are obtained. In these circumstances there may be significant
uncertainty about future cash flows due to changing economic conditions, changing
patterns of demand, new completion and many other factors; and
Projects like the Gautrain which will be operated by government call for additional focus
on risk to identify and manage any residual risks for government.
The objectives of a project risk management are to increase the probability and impact of
positive events and decrease the probability and impact of negative events in a project (PMI,
2008). Uncertainty surrounds many issues in construction projects and managing uncertainty
involves managing risks according to (Liu et al., 2005). Whilst, Shang (2011) agrees with
Bunni (2003), in that risk management gives an indication that there are processes and
decisions which need to be made in risk management to reduce the probability of an event
occurring or reducing its negative effects if it does occur. Bunni (2003) goes on to explain
that risk management is therefore concerned with the mitigation of these risks driving from
unavoidable hazards through the optimum specification of warning and safety devices, risk
control procedures such as contingency plans and emergency actions.
Liu et al. (2005) and Dawson (1997) summarized that although there are inconsistencies
between the definitions, there were similarities which can be listed such as:
It is a formal process;
It employs systematic & scientific methods;
228
It aims to identify risks in an operation or business;
It evaluates the importance of impact of those risks on the operation of the business;
It provides mechanisms to control the individual risk to provide an acceptable level of
overall exposure, and
It is not a one – off event.
These listed facts and characteristics provide a basis of defining risk management as well as
forming the foundation for risk management processes. Hence, any risk management model
should portray these important key elements concerning risk management; which the CAR
insurance subscribes.
Risk management through insurance
Insurance is a financial device for transferring risk from one individual or entity to a large
group with the same risk (Dearborn Career Development, 2004). Under the insurance
arrangement, the individual, along with other insured pay a sum to the insurance company. In
turn the insurance company agrees to pay an amount of money (reimbursement) to the
individual or on behalf of the individual if the events in the policy occur. Dearborn Career
Development (2004) further emphasizes that insurance is used to indemnify or restore a
policy holder to a pre-loss condition; furthermore, the individual accepts a known cost, the
premium, in exchange for payment of a large uncertain financial loss. Insurance not only
transfers risk, it also assists the contractor in risk management by recognizing potential risks
and reducing the probability of such risk (Perera et al., 2008). According to El-Adaway and
Kandil (2009), contractors usually purchase a set of insurance policies that include: workers
compensation and employer‘s liability insurance; commercial general liability insurance;
umbrella or excess liability insurance; contractor‘s equipment insurance; property insurance
covering contractor‘s real and personal property.
El-Adaway and Kandil (2009) also argue that there is no insurance policies that cover site,
economic, political, design and environmental risks which are risk beyond the control of the
contractors and negatively affect their associated financial and economic standing. However,
the various types of insurance available in the construction industry according to (Robinson,
2003) include: contract works; industrial special risk; professional indemnity; public and
product liability; workers in compensation; compulsory third party motor vehicle; marine
cargo or transit insurance.
Contract works which is also the contractors‘ all risk insurance has been accepted world-wide
as a comprehensive cover by which all the material damages and third party damages are
included (Perera et al., 2008). Hence, Perera et al. (2008) states that the CAR policy used in
Sri Lanka for instance are almost the same as that of other countries. However, the CAR
policy used in South Africa is slightly different from others, in the sense that the third party
insurance is not a compulsory part of CAR but can be covered on endorsement.
Contractor’s All Risks Insurance – An overview
The first CAR policy is said to have been issued in 1929 to cover the construction of the
Lambeth Bridge across the Thames in London. A special policy was created in Germany in
1934 and started to spread slowly. The real development however, took place only with
economic recovery and the construction boom after the Second World War (Wassmer, 1998).
229
In South Africa, the contractors‘ all risk policy is also often referred to as the Builder‘s risk or
the Course of construction policy. Newman (2010) explains that the main characteristic of the
CAR policy is that unlike other insurance policies, the CAR clause is not limited by reference
to specified perils; in other words, everything is covered unless it is excluded, expressly or by
implication. CAR policy is usually combined with (but must be distinguished from) public
liabilities or Third party liabilities policies.
The CAR is an insurance policy designed to cover all the parties involved in a construction
project therefore it is acquired in the joint names of the Client or the Principal agent and the
Contractor(s). CAR has a standard format regarding cover although different insurance
companies may have different special wordings to suit their clients. CAR claim are only valid
at the worksite. For claims under the material damage, the accident should have occurred on
site and the same applies to the third party liability, the accident must be a direct result of the
operations at the worksite. The storage of material is always considered if material is stored
on site.
The CAR is a temporary insurance starting either with the commencement of work or after
the unloading of the insured properties at the construction site and ending on the client‘s
acceptance of works. If the work is finished before the set completion date, the insurance
automatically falls away without a premium refund if there is also an extension or delay in
the completion of works, an extension should be agreed with the insurance company in order
to maintain validity of the policy probably with an additional payment. The insured will
always notify the insurance company if construction work is interrupted and the parties may
agree to a total or partial suspension of the cover. For plant and equipment, cover
commences at the moment the plant arrives at the construction site and ends after removal or
when work is completed.
Research Methodology
The quantitative approach was adopted in the research. Questionnaires were distributed to the
respondents by the researcher. Data from past claims was also gathered and analysed (but the
current paper does not consider this aspect of the study). This study was carried out in
Johannesburg targeting construction professionals in the Gauteng province who have had an
experience with the CAR policy. The target sample in this research was contractors, project
managers and professionals. 60 questionnaires were sent out and 41 were returned which is a
response rate of 68%. This study adopted a purposive, simplicity method of data collection.
This means that it focused on the people who had an experience with CAR and insurers who
offered CAR policy.
Mean Item Score (MIS)
A five point Likert scale was used to evaluate the factors that influence the use of CAR in
construction projects in Gauteng, South Africa with regards to the identified factors from the
reviewed literature. The adopted scale was as follows;
1. = Strongly disagree
2. = Disagree
3. = Neutral
4. = Agree
5. = Strongly agree
230
The five-point scale was converted to mean item score (MIS) for each of the factors that
influences the use of CAR as rated by the respondents. The indices were then used to rank
each item. The ranking enabled the researcher to cross reference the relative importance of
the items as perceived by the respondents. This method was used to analyse the data collected
from the survey. The computation of the relative mean item score (MIS) was calculated from
the total of all weighted responses and then relating it to the total responses on a particular
aspect. This was based on the principle that respondents‘ scores on all the selected criteria,
considered together, are the empirically determined indices of relative importance. The index
of MIS of a particular factor is the sum of the respondents‘ actual scores (on the 5-point
scale) given by all the respondents‘ as a proportion of the sum of all maximum possible
scores on the 5-point scale that all the respondents could give to that criterion. A weighting
was assigned to each response ranging from one to five for the responses of ‗strongly
disagree‘ to ‗strongly agree‘. This is expressed in a formula below. The mean MIS was
calculated for each item as follows;
MIS= 1n1 + 2n2 + 3n3 +4n4+5n5 ………………………………… Equation 1
∑N
Where:
n1 = Number of respondents for strongly disagree
n2 = Number of respondents for disagree
n3 = Number of respondents for neutral
n4 = Number of respondents for agree
n5 = Number of respondents for strongly agree
N = Total number of respondents
After mathematical computations, the criteria are then ranked in descending order of their
mean item score (from the highest to the lowest).
FINDINGS
Use of CAR insurance
Findings from the survey reveal the use of insurance from the population sample. Figure 1
reveals that CAR (100%) is the most used insurance in the construction industry since it was
purposive sampling. This was followed by the use of performance guarantee, professional
indemnity insurance and the use of third party/ public liability policy insurances, all
representing 54%.
231
Figure 1: Types of Construction Insurance
Factors influencing the use of car
According to Table 1 below, client‘s requirement is considered as paramount (MIS=4.07;
R=1). This agrees with the study that was done in Sri-Lanka by (Perera et al. 2008) which
shows the client‘s requirement as an encouragement for using CAR policy. The construction
environment in Gauteng, South Africa has generally encouraged familiarity with the use of
insurance, thereby being ranked second (MIS=4.00; R=2) as shown in Table 1.
Conditions of contract (MIS=3.87; R=3) in South Africa, for example the JBCC, NEC,
FIDIC and GCC dictate that an insurance policy be obtained for a project. This Knowledge
and experience (MIS=3.77; R=4), Government policy ranked fifth (MIS=3.57; R=5).
Government policy does not have much weight in South Africa as compared to countries
such as China where the government sets policies to assist contractors. Contractor‘s own
interest (MIS=3.45; R=6) has been rated sixth and lastly, cost (MIS=3.21; R=7) has been
rated the least factor in determining the need for insurance (Table 1). To the perspective of
the contractor, the client pays anyway so it is not of much significant how much it costs them.
To the clients‘ side, cost is not much of an issue since the protection for works will be the
client‘s priority.
Table 1: Factors influencing the use of CAR
Factors MIS Rank
Client‘s requirement 4.07 1
Construction industry environment 4.00 2
Conditions of standard construction contract 3.87 3
Knowledge and Experience 3.77 4
Government policy 3.57 5
Contractor‘s own interest 3.45 6
Cost 3.21 7
232
Factors affecting the choice of insurer
Finding on this aspect as shown in Table 2, reveal that good claim turn-around time is ranked
first (MIS= 4.23; R=1). This can be closely linked to the quality of service that is why it
quality would naturally be ranked second (MIS=4.10; R=2) to good claim turn around. The
insurer‘s reputation (MIS=4.06; R=3) resulting from the first and second factors in the rank is
then considered vital in selecting an insurer. The insurers‘ premiums (MIS=4.00; R=4) have
not been of priority in this matter since the amount is usually a once-off, which is
proportional to the value of works and the associated risks. Reinsurance is fifth (MIS=3.58;
R=5). The economic potential of an insurance company reflects its financial strength;
therefore under an insurer with a sound financial strength, the claimant is at a better position.
In this research, economic potential has been ranked in the sixth position (MIS=3.52 R=6).
Lastly, wordings of the policy were ranked at the seventh position (MIS= 3.24; R=7) as
shown in Table 2. In the Sri-Lanka findings by Perera et al. (2008) wordings of the insurance
policy is considered to be the most important factor in selecting an insurance company. This
is due to the fact that the policy must be in accordance with conditions of contract and prior
approval is needed from the Engineer or principal agent.
Table 2: Factors affecting the choice of insurer
Factors MIS Rank
Good claim turn-around time 4.23 1
Quality of Service 4.10 2
Reputation 4.06 3
Insurer‘s premiums 4.00 4
Reinsurance 3.58 5
Economic potential 3.52 6
Wordings of the policy 3.24 7
Conclusion and Further Research
The study evaluated the factors affecting the use of the Contractors‘ All risk Policy in
Gauteng from the insured‘s perspective. Findings from the study revealed that the client‘s
requirements ranked first in influencing the use of the policy as well as the standard contract
conditions. In this study, contractor‘s own interest has been one of the least factors which
indicated that if this policy was a not a matter of prescription, the probability of it not being
used is high. There an implied need for further research to assess the efficiency of the policy
to find out if it really covers the contractor‘s risks. The study also indicated that good claim
turn -around time has been the highest ranked factor in choosing an insurer with the wordings
of the policy being the least. This is an indication that the insured parties do not read the
policy so they expect to be protected by an instrument that they do not know what it protects
them from. Although the CAR policy is standard, there are some implied terms that differ
from one insurer to the other. Projects are not identical, so are the Risk management tools
which apply to different projects hence the need for the insured to read through the policy
wordings. Studies carried out in Sri-Lanka revealed that the wordings of the policy is a
significant factor in choosing an insurer therefore this study shows great variation between
the insured in Gauteng, South Africa and their counterparts in Sri- Lanka.
233
References
Bunni, N. (2003), Risk Management in construction. Spon: London.
Chihuri, S. & Pretorius, L. (2010), ‗Managing Risk for success in a South African
Engineering and construction project environment‘, South African journal of industrial
Engineering, 21(1), pp. 63-77.
Dawson, P.J. (1997) A hierarchical approach to the management of construction, University
of Nottingham: Nottingham.
Dearborn Career Development (2004), Insurance Fundamentals, Kaplan.
El-Adaway, I.H. & Kandl (2009) Contractor‘s claims Insurance: A Risk retention approach,
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 135, pp. 819-825.
Liu, J., Li, B. & Zhang, J. (2005) Insurance and Construction project risks: a review and
research agenda, School of management Tianjin University, Tianjin: China
Liu, J., Li, B., Lin, B. & Nguyen, V. (2007) Key issues and challenges of risk management
and insurance in China‘s construction Industry an empirical study, Industrial
Management and Data Systems, 107(3), pp. 382-396.
Neumman, F. (2010) Notes on financial guarantees and Contractors‘ all Risks policy.
Newmann and Associates.
Pankaj, V.N. & Pankaj P.B (2013) To Study on the Risk Management, Risk Treatment
Strategies and Insurance in Construction Industries, International Journal of Innovative
Technology and Exploring Engineering, 3(4), pp. 68-74.
Perera, B.A.K.S., Rathnakaye, R.M.C.K. & Rameezdeen, R. (2008) Use of insurance in
managing construction projects: An evaluation of the Contractors‘ All Risks (CAR)
Insurance Policy‘, Journal of the Built Environment, 8(2), pp. 25-31.
Project Management Institute (2004) Project management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK),
Project Risk Management, Pennsylvania.
Robinson, A.A. (2003) Construction and infrastructure projects- risk management through
Insurance, Brisbane.
Shang, S. (2010) Construction Risk Management through Insurance and Bonding in China‘,
Mechanic Automation and control Engineering (MACE), 2011 Second International
conference, 15-17 July 2011.
Wassmer, L. (1998), Contractors‘ All Risks insurance, Swiss Reinsurance Company: Zurich.
234
Perception of effectiveness of written communication in
construction projects in Nigeria Anthony Ujene
1, Uche Edike
2 and Emmanuel Achuenu
3
1Department of Building,
University of Uyo, Nigeria 2Bells University of Technology, Nigeria
3Department of Building,
University of Jos, Nigeria
Abstract: The aim of this study is to investigate the perceptions of the level of use of written
communication and its impact on performance of construction projects in Nigeria. The
method adopted in this research was by the use of questionnaires. One hundred and twenty-
eight (128) questionnaires were produced and administered to 47 professionals, 51 clients and
30 contractors. Data were analysed using mean score and Kruskal-Wallis tests. The study
concludes that the level of use of communication transfer media and instruments in written,
communication differs. Drawings, bills of quantities and schedules were perceived by
contractors, professionals and clients as the most preferred means of written communication.
Health and safety management, quality management and early warning plan were least used
in written communication. The study also concludes that the factors investigated have
different impacts on the communication methods: the impact of written communication on
cost is very significant. The study therefore recommends that consideration should be placed on
the transfer media and instruments and factor most appropriate to a communication type and
group of people concerned. Health and safety management plan, quality management plan
and early warning system/plan should be given prominence as contract document as required
by the National Building Code in Nigeria.
Keywords:
Communication, Construction, Projects, Stakeholder, Nigeria
Introduction
It is the sole responsibility of the construction sector to construct the physical infrastructure
that supports human life (Wallbauma et al., 2010). The construction undertakings involve
many stakeholders who interact in different ways through communication (Gibson, 2000;
Chinyio and Olomolaiye, 2010). Mclennan and Scott (2002) noted that all along the supply
chain of an asset, from turning ideas into concepts, concepts into plans, plans into assets,
assets into services and so on, is primarily about people interacting with people and about
moving from one set of relationships to another through effective communication. Presently,
the project team members are often geographically separated and their successful
management can be enhanced by effective communication (Ahuja and Yang, 2006). Green
(2001) has also linked communication to team effectiveness, the integration of work units
across organisational levels, characteristics of effective supervision, job satisfaction, and
overall organisational effectiveness. Dainty et al. (2006) expresses the importance of
235
communication as being the ―lifeblood of any system of human interaction‖ and without it
there can be no elaborate activity.
The construction industry consists of many stakeholders that largely depend on different
forms of effective communication. Typical literary definitions of effective communications
include: an exchange of information, an act or instance of transmitting information, a verbal
or written message, a technique for expressing ideas effectively, and process by which
meanings are exchanged between individuals through a common system of symbols. Affare
(2012) opined that effective communication is a two-way process, which involves active
listening and reflects the accountability of speaker and listener. It utilizes feedback to confirm
understanding that makes it free of stress. Hence, effective communication involves sending
and receiving of messages with accomplishment of its purpose (Karen, 2012).
The problem therefore is that ineffective communication leads to a lot of mistakes and
frustration between parties, while errors and omissions in paper-documents often lead to
unexpected costs, delays and litigation between project parties. Tam (1999) also reported that
delays and increased cost in construction projects can be traced to poor coordination caused
by inadequate, insufficient, inappropriate, inaccurate, inconsistent, late information or a
combination of them all. Ineffective communication sometimes lead to mistakes as survey
results have suggested that mistakes are often made because craftsmen are not aware that
changes have been made (Arnorsson, 2012; Perumal and Abubakar, 2011). Beyh and
Kagioglou (2004) opined that efficient communication systems and resources are required, in
order to improve the transmission speed of information between the site offices, headquarter
and the supply chain, such improvement in communications is further expected to achieve
significant reductions of construction costs. This study therefore aims at advancing the
knowledge of effective written communication with a view to enhancing successful project
delivery in the construction industry. This is sequel to the need to improve the link between
the construction site and designers, and to improve communication between all actors on the
construction site for enhanced project performance. To achieve the above aim, the specific
objective was to study the perception of the level of use of written communication in
Nigerian construction industry and investigate the factors influencing their effectiveness.
Research Methodology
This study adopted the exploratory survey design approach using structured questionnaires.
The study population consists of professionals, clients and contractors involved in the
execution of buildings projects in Nigeria. The study purposively sampled 135 stakeholders
resulting in 128 valid questionnaires comprising 47 professionals, 51 clients and 30
contractors. Twenty two written communications transfer media and instruments were identified.
Twenty nine factors affecting their effectiveness also identified from literature, while cost, time and
quality were performance criteria.
The measurements were on a five point Likert-scale namely: nil=1, low=2, moderate=3,
high=4 and very high=5 using Mean Score (MS) of the Likert ratings.
Findings and Discussions In order to evaluate the level of use of transfer media and instruments of written
communication, twenty two transfer media and instruments were identified from the
236
literature. The internal stake holders were requested to rate the level of their use with the
scale described in the methodology. The result is presented in Table 1.
Table1. Perceptions of the Use of Written Communication Transfer Media and Instruments
Media and instruments Contractors N=30 Professionals N=47 Clients N=51
Sum MS Rank Sum MS Rank Sum MS Rank
Drawings 131 4.37 1 215 4.57 1 223 4.37 1
Bill of quantities 131 4.37 1 198 4.21 4 212 4.16 2
Schedules 127 4.23 4 195 4.15 5 212 4.16 2
Letters and notices 124 4.13 5 199 4.23 3 211 4.14 4
Specification 124 4.13 5 200 4.26 2 208 4.08 5
Programmes and charts 129 4.30 3 193 4.11 6 203 3.98 6
Post 118 3.93 9 185 3.94 7 200 3.92 7
Email 122 4.07 8 172 3.66 9 197 3.86 8
Proposals 124 4.13 5 166 3.53 10 193 3.78 9
Intranet or Extranet 104 3.47 11 160 3.40 11 190 3.73 10
Reports 102 3.40 13 159 3.38 14 180 3.53 11
Transfer of computer discs 104 3.47 11 160 3.40 11 179 3.51 12
Cost report 101 3.37 14 179 3.81 8 179 3.51 12
Payment advice 101 3.37 14 160 3.40 11 177 3.47 14
Photographs 95 3.17 16 140 2.98 17 163 3.20 15
Fax 92 3.07 17 157 3.34 15 160 3.14 16
Certificate of payment 106 3.53 10 134 2.85 19 159 3.12 17
Cost plan 92 3.07 17 155 3.30 16 152 2.98 18
Escalation costing presentation 82 2.73 20 140 2.98 17 151 2.96 19
Health and safety management plan 91 3.03 19 109 2.32 21 146 2.86 20
Quality management plan 72 2.40 21 111 2.36 20 129 2.53 21
Early warning system 66 2.20 22 105 2.23 22 119 2.33 22
Table 1 shows the three stakeholders sampled perceived that drawings are the mostly used
written communication transfer instrument, although the contractors ranked the bill of
quantities at the same level with drawings (MS=4.37), the professionals ranked specification
second (MS=4.21), while the clients perceived that bills of quantities and schedules
(MS=4.16) are equally next to drawings followed by letters and notices in level of usage. The
result also shows that the contractors ranked programmes and charts in the third place while
professionals and clients ranked it in the sixth position. All the stakeholders perceive health
and safety management plan, quality management plan and early warning system as least
used in written communication.
In order to evaluate stakeholders‘ perceptions of the Influence of factors on the effectiveness
of written communication, twenty nine factors were identified from literature and presented
to the respondents. The result is presented in Table 2. The result in Table 2 shows that by the
clients‘ perception detailed drawings (MS=4.37, 4.47, 4.47), proper documentation (MS=
4.33, 4.13, 4.33) and clear and legible writing or lettering (MS=3.87, 4.13, 3.29) ranked first,
second and third respectively. The perceptions of the professionals show that detailed
drawings, perception of the communicators and proper documentation ranked first, second
and third respectively. The result in Table 2 shows that the contractors is of the view that
detailed drawings is the most significant factor followed by proper documentation, while
clear writing or lettering and frequency of communication both ranked third most influential
factor on written communication. All the stakeholders equally perceive that linguistic
237
variations, accent and dialect, and physical factors have the least influence ranking eleventh
and tenth respectively.
Table 2: Influence of factors on the effectiveness of written communication
Factors Contractors N=30 Professionals N=47 Clients N=51
Sum MS Rank Sum MS Rank Sum MS Rank
Detailed drawings/ information 131 4.37 2 210 4.47 1 228 4.47 1
Proper documentation 130 4.33 3 194 4.13 4 221 4.33 2
Clear and legible writing or lettering 116 3.87 7 194 4.13 4 219 4.29 3
Frequency of communication 114 3.80 11 193 4.11 6 219 4.29 3
Channels of communication 121 4.03 5 195 4.15 3 216 4.24 5
Communication style (directness,
precision and openness)
124 4.13 4 190 4.04 7 211 4.14 6
Level of control 106 3.53 16 185 3.94 9 209 4.10 7
Team/ organisational structure 116 3.87 7 183 3.89 10 209 4.10 7
Perception of the communicators 134 4.47 1 198 4.21 2 205 4.02 9
Level of experience of communicators 116 3.87 7 188 4.00 8 198 3.88 10
Urgency, unexpectedness, and uncertainty
of situation
116 3.87 7 178 3.79 11 193 3.78 11
Distance of office from site 119 3.97 6 177 3.77 12 192 3.76 12
Nature of communication setting 104 3.47 20 177 3.77 12 191 3.75 13
Participants relationship and their social
roles
103 3.43 21 169 3.60 17 184 3.61 14
Understanding of received message 106 3.53 16 170 3.62 14 184 3.61 14
Complexity of the job 107 3.57 15 170 3.62 14 176 3.45 16
Nervousness/ emotional status 101 3.37 23 166 3.53 18 176 3.45 16
Geographical location 109 3.63 14 163 3.47 19 174 3.41 18
Types of activities being done 112 3.73 12 170 3.62 14 173 3.39 19
Level of cooperation 106 3.53 16 160 3.40 20 170 3.33 20
Experience of the site agent or clerk of
works
106 3.53 16 158 3.36 21 167 3.27 21
Onsite supervision (design and
construction)
94 3.13 26 154 3.28 22 167 3.27 21
Inferiority complex of artisans and
operatives
95 3.17 25 152 3.23 23 157 3.08 23
Project delivery system (linkages) 102 3.40 22 146 3.11 25 155 3.04 24
Fear of the authority 111 3.70 13 151 3.21 24 148 2.90 25
Cultural differences (ethnic, religious, and
social differences)
97 3.23 24 134 2.85 27 130 2.55 26
Gender of communicators 92 3.07 27 130 2.77 28 127 2.49 27
Physical factors ( noise, distance, time,
environment, physical medium)
79 2.63 28 139 2.96 26 118 2.31 28
Linguistic variations 72 2.40 29 98 2.09 29 105 2.06 29
It was observed that all the respondents perceived drawings as the mostly used written
communication transfer instrument, although the contractors ranked the bill of quantities at
the same level with drawings, the professionals ranked specification second, while the clients
perceived that bills of quantities and schedules are equally next to drawings followed by
letters and notices in level of usage. The result also shows that the contractors ranked
programmes and charts in the third place while professionals and clients ranked it in the sixth
238
position. All the respondents perceive health and safety management plan, quality
management plan and early warning system as least used in written communication.
There was an indication that the appropriate information sometimes may not be
communicated, as the control of information according to Abdulhameed et al. (2012)
contribute significantly to project success. The result of the study shows that detailing of
drawings most significantly influence written communication which is similar to lack of
detailed drawing seen as barrier to communication (Adedapo, 2009).
Conclusions and Recommendation
This study investigated the internal stakeholders‘ perceptions of the level of use written
communication transfer media and instruments and factors influencing written
communication effectiveness. It also compared the perceptions of contractors, professionals
and clients on the above subject. It was concluded that all the stakeholders perceive health
and safety management plan, quality management plan and early warning system as least
used in written communication even though they are now components of contract documents
in the National Building Code of Nigeria. The study also concluded that there is no
significant variation in perceptions among the contractors, professionals and clients
concerning level of use written communication transfer media and instruments, the factors
influencing written communication effectiveness and the influence of written communication
on performance of construction project in Nigeria. The study therefore recommends that for
effective communication consideration should be placed on the transfer media and
instruments most appropriate to a communication type and group of people concern. It is also
recommended that health and safety management plan, quality management plan and early
warning system/plan be also given prominence as contract document if project objective of
safety and quality must be achieved. The study also recommends that the view of any of the
category of stakeholders could be used in decision making on the subject matter as their
perceptions do not significantly vary.
References Abdulhameed, A.S., Bungwon, H.D. & Sheyin, A.Y. (2012). Construction Methodology in
the Delivery of Building Projects in Nigeria. The Professional Builder, 3(2): 95-105.
Adedapo, O. (2009). Effective Communication as an Aid to Construction Project Delivery,
unpublished article, available: http://www.economywatch.com/world-
industries/construction, accessed 28/2/2014.
Affare, M.A.W. (2012). An Assessment of Project Communication Management on
Construction Projects in Ghana. MBA, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and
Technology.
Ahuja, V. & Yang, J. (2006). Communication Protocol for Building Project Management -
The Potential of I.T. Enhanced Approaches for the Indian Building Practice. In Baldwin,
A, Hui, E, & Wong, F (Eds.) BEAR 2006: Construction Sustainability and Innovation:
Proceedings of the CIB W89 International Conference on Building Education and
Research, 10-13, April, China, Hong Kong.
Arnorsson, H. (2012). Optimizing the Information Flow on the Construction Site. MSc,
Aalborg University.
Beyh, S. & Kagioglou, M. (2004). Construction Sites Communications Towards the
Integration of IP Telephony, Journal of Information Technology in Construction, 9: 325-
344.
239
Chinyio, E. & Olomolaiye, P. (2010). Introducing Stakeholder Management. In: Chinyio, E.
and Olomolaiye, P. (Eds), Construction Stakeholder Management (1st ed.), West Sussex:
John Wiley and Sons: 1-12.
Dainty, A., Moore, D. & Murray, M. (2006). Communication in Construction: Theory and
Practice, Oxford: Routledge. Gibson, K. (2000). The Moral Basis of Stakeholder Theory. Journal of Business Ethics,
26(3), 245-257. Green, F.B. (2001). Managing the Unmanageable: Integrating the Supply Chain with New
Developments in Software. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 6(5):
208-211.
Karen, B.K. (2012). Communication in Architecture Project Management: The Case of
Architecture Firms in Lebanon. PhD, Grenoble School of Management, Technology and
Innovation.
Mclennan, A. & Scott, G. (2002). Relationships in Project Delivery. Civil Contractors
Federation Annual Conference, Hamilton Island October 5.
Perumal, V.R. & Abubakar, A. (2011). The Need for Standardization of Documents Towards
an Efficient Communication in the Construction Industry. World Applied Sciences
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Tam, C.M. (1999). Use of the Internet to Enhance Construction Communication: Total
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Wallbauma, H., Silvab, L., Plessisc, C., Coled, R., Hoballahe, A. & Kranka, S. (2010).
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240
Knowledge of the Benefits of Green Building – Architects’
Perspectives DJ Hoffman and E König
Department of Construction Economics,
University of Pretoria, South Africa
Abstract:
The number of new certified Green Star accredited buildings in South Africa has been
relatively low. Insufficient knowledge amongst stakeholders of the benefits offered by green
building may have been a cause of this situation. This study evaluated the opinion of
architects on stakeholders‘ knowledge regarding the benefits offered by green building in
South Africa. The findings of the study were based on data from a questionnaire forwarded to
42 respondents from Gauteng to evaluate their perspectives on the levels of knowledge on the
benefits offered by green building. The study revealed that respondents have some
knowledge on the study object subject but also indicated conflicting responses regarding
aspects such as return on investment or the ability to reduce vacancy factors. Respondents
expressed a strong opinion that industry stakeholders are not sufficiently aware of green
building benefits and that the GBCSA can do more to inform stakeholders about benefits of
green building. The paper indicated that considerable scope may exist to inform industry
stakeholders better and to increase the level of knowledge about green building and the
benefits it offers. Institutions such as the GBCSA, South African Institute of Architects and
other professional councils and associations can benefit from this. Shortcomings identified
can be addressed through information to members and CPD lectures. The study was restricted
to architects from Gauteng only. The study did not investigate the opinion of developers,
owners or other built environment professionals on the stated research objective.
Keywords:
Architects, Global warming, Green building, South Africa
Introduction
The negative effects of global warming such as rising average temperature and even a
possible ice free winter by 2040 have been widely published (UNEP, 2007). Birne et al stated
that climate change may be the most significant environmental challenge of our time (2009).
The construction industry carries a lot of the blame for this situation as the industry is
generates 50% of the world‘s waste, much of the water pollution and 40% of the world‘s air
pollution (GBCSA, 2013). Buildings account for 25% of world wood harvest, one sixth of
the world‘s fresh water withdrawal, and two-fifths of its materials and energy flows. It is
therefore important that buildings should become more natural resource efficient
(Makwarela, 2010).
The building industry‘s response was to motivate and move towards the design and
construction of more energy efficient and sustainable green buildings that will reduce the
emission of greenhouse gasses. In South Africa however the initial uptake of new green
development has been relatively slow (Hoffman & Cloete, 2014). To increase the rate of new
green developments, it is important for stakeholders such as developers, clients and other
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professionals in the construction industry to be informed about the benefits offered by green
building. This study evaluated the level of knowledge of built environment stakeholders
regarding the benefits offered by green building as perceived by architects in South Africa.
Review of the related literature
Global warming
The built environment produces 32% of the world‘s carbon dioxide emissions with buildings
accounting for 15% of the world‘s fresh water resources and 40% of the earth‘s energy
consumption (Gunnel, 2009). A 2010 study in the United States confirmed that water usage
by buildings has increased by more than 26% between 1985 and 2005 and that the demolition
and construction of buildings have been responsible for 60% of non-industrial waste. Only
25% of that waste is recovered through recycling (Fischer, 2010). Brown et al. (2009) have
stated that Africa, including South Africa may be significantly exposed to climate change.
Climate variability and may come at great cost for social and economic well-being in many
parts of Africa. Food production is expected to become more unpredictable, water shortages
will increase and more nations may experience shortages. Ecosystem change will increase,
especially in South Africa.
Green Building
Fischer (2010) characterizes green building as integrated building practices that significantly
reduce the environmental footprint of a building over the entire life cycle of a building. Kats
(2003) supports this definition and adds that sustainable buildings are sensitive to the
environment, energy and resource consumption, impact on people and the world as a whole.
Sustainable construction manages the serviceability of a building during its lifetime as well as
the demolition and recycling of resources and to reduce waste (Hill and Bowen, 1997).
Sustainable buildings are more efficient that conventional buildings providing healthier
learning, work and living environments with cleaner air and more natural light Kats (2003).
Fischer indicated that in addition to elements such as energy, water, minerals, waste, and
health, siting is also a prominent element impacting on transportation, ecology and smart
growth (2010). South Africa is a developing country that relies on low grade coal for
electricity generation. This is a major source for greenhouse gasses (Bodansky et al., 2007).
In response to this the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) developed the SANS 204
series of standards as a basis or minimum standards for buildings and construction methods
for sustainable buildings. These requirements can result in up to 40% increased energy
efficiencies of commercial buildings (Gunnel, 2009).
The transformation
During the 1990‘s the building industry realized that public policy and the growing market
demand for environmentally friendly buildings require changes to building design and
operation. Measuring tools were needed for sustainability in the construction industry
(Haapio & Viitaniemi, 2008). Although cost may be an issue, Nixon (2009) confirmed that
people are much more attracted to products and services that are resource efficient.
Kibert (2013) indicated that rapid penetration of green building in the United States was
achieved by three primary drivers:
242
Green building design recognizes the effect of the construction industry on the well-
being of human occupants.
Green building provides an ethical and practical response towards the global warming
impact on the environment.
Sustainable construction over the entire life cycle of the buildings makes economic
sense recovering initial capital cost within a relatively short period.
Cost and financial benefits
Life-cycle assessment
The Life-cycle assessment (LCA) evaluates all environmental impacts associated with a
specific product over its entire life cycle. Energy and water costs consumed by buildings are
rising, due to the diminishing supply. This will result in a much shorter payback period for
green investments (Circo, 2008).
Financial benefit
According to Kats (2003) incorporating green building principles into the construction of
buildings will result in an initial cost premium of 2-10%, but may result in a yield of over ten
times the initial investment. Lower costs of energy, water, environmental and emission,
operations and maintenance and waste disposal as well as savings from increased
productivity and health are a few of the financial benefits of green building.
Barriers for professional consultants
The general perception that green buildings are more expensive than conventional buildings
and cannot be justified from a cost benefits perspective has created a significant obstacle for
the advancement of green design and building (Kats, 2003). Circo (2008) opposed this
assumption and offered that sustainability can be accomplished at very little additional cost.
Developers and clients should focus on total investments cost over the life of the building to
determine their profitability.
Lower operating cost is another major benefit offered by green building. Goodman (2013)
supported this by indicating that future utility bills for inefficient buildings may be four times
as costly as those of efficient buildings. Energy tracking and benchmarking will ultimately
reduce one of the biggest operating expenses for building owners. The challenge for
construction professionals is to adapt to sustainable design and construction and the
additional cost incurred. Built environment professionals have an important function in the
development of green building. However further research is required to establish in greater
detail the extent of knowledge that exists amongst industry stakeholders about the benefits
offered by green building. Research may also assist to clarify the levels of knowledge
deemed sufficient to empower stakeholders towards accelerating the rate of new green
developments.
Research methodology
This study focused on the opinion of architects only. Architects were identified as
respondents as they are primarily responsible for the design of buildings and as principal
agents often assist employers with investment decisions. The data for the study was obtained
from a questionnaire forwarded to 42 architects in Gauteng Province. These architects were
identified as being part of the consultant teams of recent new commercial real estate
243
developments in Gauteng. A total of 19 questionnaires were returned giving a response rate
45%. The questionnaire consisted of 16 questions that evaluated the levels of knowledge on
the benefits offered by green building. The different questions originated from the review of
the literature.
Findings
All of the respondents‘ firms have been practising in industry for longer than 10 years, with
58% having been in practise for more than 16 years. The individual respondent‘s data
indicated that 37% had less than 5 years of experience, 16% had 6-10 years of experience,
21% had 11-15 years of experience and the remaining 26% had more than 15 years of
experience.
Green building offers a high potential for return on investment
A total of 58% of the respondents agreed with the above statement. However only 16% were
strongly convinced and as much as 26% disagreed. All respondents who strongly agreed had
more than 5 years of experience.
The benefits of green building
A total of 84% of respondents were positive that green building benefits should be compared
over the entire lifetime of buildings. The 16% of respondents who disagreed did not indicate
any correlation with experience categories. One comment received was that ―clients like the
idea of a green building, but are usually taken aback by the high construction costs, without
fully evaluating the long term savings during the building's life cycle. Conventional buildings
are cheaper to build and more expensive to maintain, whilst green building are more
expensive to build and cheaper to maintain.‖
The CO2 footprint of buildings apply over the entire life cycle of the building
Table 2 detailed that all respondents agreed that green building should focus on reducing the
carbon footprint of buildings over their total life cycle while 58% absolute agree with the
statement.
The rising electricity cost in SA will stimulate Green Building
A total of 95% of respondents agreed that South Africa‘s rising electricity cost will be
important in stimulating green building (see Table 3).
Table 1: The rising electricity cost in SA will stimulate Green Building
The marketing image of Green building is important for developers
A total of 84% of respondents were positive that the marketing benefits of green building are
very important to developers (see Table 4). All of the least experienced respondents agreed
with this. The 16% who disagreed that marketing is important all had more than 10 years of
(%)
Absolutely Disagree 0.00
Disagree 5.00
Agree 58.00
Absolutely Agree 37.00
244
experience (see Figure 1).Some respondents however pointed at less positive marketing
aspects and one respondent commented that ―developers build green as a status thing, to earn
public perception points of how 'caring' they are.‖
Figure 1: The benefit of the marketing image of Green building is important for developers
Developers/Clients may choose to build green to escape the possible penalties of future
legislation
The respondents differed widely on the motivational effect of penalties that may in future be
enforced by legislation on sustainable buildings (see Table 5).
Table 2: Developers/Clients choose to build green to escape legislation penalties
As much as 89% of the more experienced respondents disagreed that the effect of penalties
will be significant. However, 57% of the least experience respondents agreed that penalising
legislation may positively motivate green building decisions.
Figure 2: Developers/Clients choose to build green to escape the possible penalties of future legislation
(%)
Absolutely Disagree 11.00
Disagree 53.00
Agree 32.00
Absolutely Agree 5.00
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Client/Developers should experience lower vacancy factors from green building
compared to conventional buildings
Table 6 indicated that respondents had a fairly neutral opinion on the ability of green building
to reduce vacancy of buildings. Only 10% of respondents had strong convictions about this
issue.
Table 3: Client/Developers should experience lower vacancy factors from green building compared to
conventional buildings
One respondent commented that he agrees in theory, but that not all green buildings offer
very desirable working conditions - ―personally I‘ve seen a lot of ―Green Building‖ go wrong
and it can be an uncomfortable place to live in.‖
Stakeholders in the construction industry are not fully aware of the benefits in building
green
A total of 79% of respondents agreed that stakeholders are not fully informed about green
building benefits. Only 21 % were of the opinion that stakeholders are adequately informed.
Figure 3: Stakeholders in the construction industry are not fully aware of the benefits in building green
The Green Building Council of South African (GBCSA) should do more to inform
clients/developers about the benefits of Green Building
A large majority (84%) of respondents agreed that the GBCSA can do more to inform
stakeholders about benefits of green building with 56% of these respondents being strong
convinced that the GBCSA should do more to inform stakeholders. All the respondents with
less than 5 years of experience agreed with the statement, indicating that younger architects
may feel even less informed by and connected to the GBCSA.
However some respondents placed more emphasis on stakeholders‘ own responsibilities -
―The GBCSA is not here to babysit us; we just need to meet the standards to be on par with
the rest of the world.‖
(%)
Absolutely Disagree 5%
Disagree 42%
Agree 47%
Absolutely Agree 5%
246
Figure 4: The South African Green Building Council should do more to inform clients/developers about the
benefits of Green Building
Conclusion and Further Research
The study revealed that the large majority of respondents are convinced that green building
affects the entire lifetime of buildings. Aspects such as the evaluation of the benefits and the
carbon footprint of the building are both included in this category.
As many as 95% of the respondents agree that rising electricity cost will stimulate green
building in future, while 84% are of the opinion that the positive marketing image of green
building strongly influence developers decisions. Although the data indicated that most
respondents are generally positive about green building, almost half of them do not agree that
green building will result in lower vacancy factors for green buildings. A total of 26% of
respondents were not convinced about the positive return on investment potential of green
building. The study indicated that 79% of respondents are of the opinion that stakeholders are
not fully aware of green building benefits. Information about benefits of green building can
be supplied by institutions as the GBCSA. A large majority of 84% of respondents agreed
that the GBCSA can do more to inform stakeholders about benefits of green building.
The study revealed that whilst green building stakeholders such as architects are not
uninformed about green building, considerable scope exists to inform stakeholders better and
increase the level of knowledge about green building and the benefits it offers. Institutions
such as the GBCSA, South African Institute of Architects and other professional councils and
associations can benefit from taking note of the findings of the study. Some of the
shortcomings that were identified can be addressed through information to members and CPD
lectures. Recommendations for further research include to:
Repeat the study amongst a larger, more representative sample of South African
architects;
To evaluate the role of the GBCSA in informing stakeholders in more detail, and
To evaluate the effect of green building on aspects such as marketing image or occupation
rate in more detail.
247
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