Editorial

Citation

Akintoye, A. and Birnie, J. (2010), "Editorial", Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, Vol. 15 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/jfmpc.2010.37615baa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Journal of Financial Management of Property and Construction, Volume 15, Issue 2

Since the founding of this journal some 15 years ago, the nature of financial management of property and construction has diversified into many new subject areas which were not originally envisaged. Health and safety issues, risk assessment, property development efficiency are but a few examples. The journal welcomes papers in all these new areas as well as the more traditional areas. It is hoped that through the publication of new subject matter that those involved in property and construction may see the contribution that new areas of research may make to the future efficiency of the processes of financial management.

Late and incomplete payments have always been a major cause of concern to those in construction, be they main contractor, sub contractor, supplier or consultant. In their paper David G. Carmichael and Maria C.A. Balatbat have presented a model based on Markov chains which attempts to predict, based on probability, the likelihood of payment by a certain date. The authors believe it offers practical usage without the necessity of a full understanding of the mathematical theory of the process. Nevertheless, the paper does present the process in detail for those wishing same. Three different examples of usage are given. The authors discuss in general how contractors deal with what they describe as uncollectables. In their opinion the process described can become an integral part of the financial management of a contract including its cash flow, risk evaluation and accounting procedures.

The second paper by Adnan Enshassi, Sherif Mohamed and Ala’a El Karriri considers the factors that determine the decision to bid or not to for contractors operating in the Gaza Strip, Palestine. The research method used was a postal questionnaire given to contractors, clients and consultants. A total of 78 factors were identified which were ranked by them according to their considered importance. The findings of the key ones are fully discussed. Factors and findings from previous research are also discussed. Statistical analysis of results of findings for each group are given and also compared between same. Considerable agreement between groups was shown. The authors recommend that the findings should be considered by clients and consultants when considering which contractors should be considered in awarding a contract.

The next paper by Xiaoling Zhang, Liyin Shen, Martin Skitmore and Bo Xia examines the key competitiveness indicators for new real estate developers. The paper addresses how to provide guidelines to assist new real estate developers achieve greater efficiency when starting their businesses. In the literature review, the various methods used to measure competitiveness are given and discussed. To establish the key factors the authors have used the Delphi forecasting method in this research to determine the relative significance of each factor. A group of 20 experts in the field were asked to produce a list of five key factors for further consideration using an indicator analysis three stage process. This produced 18 factors which were then reduced to nine and from this the final five were obtained. The findings at each stage are given and then a statistical analysis using Kendall’s coefficient of concordance was carried out. The results of same are then presented and the overall findings from research discussed. The authors suggest the findings will help developers in their future survival and growth.

The fourth paper by David J. Edwards and Gary D. Holt describes their research into a work study carried out with a National UK contractor to collect data relating to hand arm vibrators exposure by workers. Health and safety legislation now requires this to be monitored and risk assessed. The authors detail much of the current legislation and codes of practice which are operative. The paper makes a significant contribution to demonstrating how incidents which are harmful to the contractor, the workers and to society can be reduced, resulting in financial savings to all involved in the construction process. In order to permit contractors and others to monitor the processes described in paper, the authors give examples of documentation used and also stress that use of spreadsheet programs is sufficient to collect and analyse data. One of the key findings is the need for an equitable distribution of tool use amongst the operatives. Overall, the paper makes a useful contribution to enabling those in practice carry out appropriate health and safety risk assessments in this area.

The final paper by Abdul-Rashid Abdul-Aziz and Sing Sing Wong considers the skills and factors which enable a contractor in a developing country win contracts in other countries. Their paper is specific to Malaysia. The authors discuss the use of various models such as the electic paradigm in previous research carried out in different countries to ascertain the factors which enabled contractors to be competitive elsewhere. In their own research, a questionnaire was given to all Malaysian contractors known to work internationally. This was then followed up by interviews with the firms. Unfortunately a low response rate means that the results must be treated with some caution. The findings showed broad agreement in regard to related competitive assets. In regard to country related factors there was low competitive value shown. Technology and knowledge skills were found to be the key ones required to obtain work abroad, with firms often specialising in types of work to increase their success rates. In regard to home-related competitive advantages these were not considered of great importance and often firms sought work abroad because of lack of work at home.

Akintola Akintoye, Jim Birnie