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The purpose of the study is to map previous and current construction procurement research to further develop the research in the Nordic counties.

Mapping of previous and current research based on search in national database. The analysis is based on research perspectives, empirical contexts and research methods.

That the blind spots are partly overlapping, but that there is potential for knowledge transfer in some areas. There is also the potential for a Nordic research program on one or several of the blind spots.

The study is limited to PhD and licentiate-thesis reports in Norway and Sweden. Further research should include the other Nordic countries and a more extensive literature review including journal articles to broaden the scope. Findings have implications on collaborative Nordic research initiatives, knowledge transfer and in a longer perspective on the level of procurement knowledge in industry and society.

Findings provide a base for future research collaborations, initiatives and applications.

Findings provide a comprehensive understanding of construction procurement research in the Nordic countries, starting with Norway and Sweden. This understanding is needed for developing research collaborations and applications.

Cost overrun is a significant issue in construction, an undesirable feature the industry has long been associated with. Poor procurement practices are often blamed for subsequent cost overruns in construction, especially with conventional procurement methods leading to outrageous cost overruns. The purpose of this study is to review the features of the new models of construction procurement (NMCP) and assess their potential to reduce cost overruns in construction projects.

A literature review was conducted to identify the issues of procurement leading to cost escalations. Primary data were obtained through exploratory, semi-structured interviews using a case study approach.

Clients’ lack of knowledge was highlighted as a key issue in procurement that interlinks with many factors causing cost escalation. The findings suggest that the features contained within the NMCP, such as early contractor involvement and collaboration throughout the project team, have the potential to make a positive contribution to addressing cost escalation in construction.

The primary research was undertaken as an exploratory study and presents the contractor's perspective. Further research is therefore suggested, with multiple organisations representing all key stakeholders in a construction project, including clients, consultants, sub-contractors and suppliers.

The study recommends awareness of the NMCP be raised throughout the industry, and simplified information must be made available to help widen uptake of these contemporary procurement methods.

Addressing the dearth of research concerning the use of NMCP within the industry, this study makes a niche contribution to the body of knowledge on construction cost management by illustrating the potential offered by these new procurement methods for addressing cost escalation. For an industry where collaboration is accepted with reservations, this case study demonstrates how novel collaborative strategies such as open book costing, project bank accounts and shared pain and gain mechanisms can be implemented as part of the procurement strategy and how such strategies can contribute towards minimising the cost escalation inherent in construction projects.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the benefits and challenges of implementing circular economy (CE), as well as shed light on the influence of procurement strategy in CE implementation in construction projects.

A qualitative research approach with abductive reasoning was adopted. The empirical data were collected from the construction industry in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The results reveal that clients, consultants and contractors have limited awareness, knowledge and motivation to implement CE in construction projects. The absence of incentives to design projects following CE principles, lack of involvement of contractors and suppliers, non-use of materials that use CE principles and current procurement strategies are the main challenges for the implementation of CE in the UAE.

Previous research offers limited knowledge on CE and its implementation in construction projects particularly from a procurement strategy perspective. The findings of the study provide new knowledge of the benefits, challenges and role of procurement strategy for implementing CE. It is suggested that collaborative and partnering-based procurement methods are needed to facilitate the effective implementation of CE.

The purpose of this paper is to attempt to shed light on procurement innovation by examining two state-of-the-art procurement systems in China – an agent-construction system (ACS or in Chinese Dai Jian Zhi) and public-private partnership (PPP), with special consideration given to the systems’ particular political, economic, social, technological, environmental, and legal (PESTEL) background.

The paper does so by using content analyses, semi-structured interviews, and a “PESTEL-Procurement Innovation” framework.

It is found that PPP has not been as popular as expected, while the ACS, which is little known to the international construction management community, is widespread in China. The study of ACS and PPP further reveals that congruence between a procurement system and its external PESTEL conditions is essential for procurement innovation.

The “PESTEL-Procurement Innovation” framework could be a useful tool for devising procurement innovation; although there are many questions yet to be answered by further research.

The paper provides useful insights into procurement innovation, particularly when governments worldwide are searching for innovative procurement systems to help deliver public projects and services.

The paper possesses originality in that it tackles procurement innovation, an area that is under researched in construction management. It exhorts the re-connection between a procurement system and its external PESTEL conditions for devising bona fide procurement innovations.

The purpose of this paper is to examine different categories of building project procurement routes based on organisational, contractual, financial and technical issues.

The paper is based on review of literature and conditions of contracts. The UK construction industry serves as a general frame of reference. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors survey of Contracts in Use from 1985 to 2004 is used to probe the share and value of contracts along different procurement routes and across different conditions of contracts in the UK. The logic is that the value and the share of contracts will indicate the behaviour of different procurement routes in the UK construction market while the in‐depth analysis of conditions of contracts will show the gaps and relationships between the general definition/categorisation and contractual context (conditions of contracts) of each of the procurement routes.

The preliminary result of the analysis shows that traditional routes remain the main type of procurement route for the construction project industry sector, within which different management and incentivisation systems are applied for greater efficiency. The conditions of contracts in the UK support this assertion by aligning different procurement routes to different conditions of contracts and additionally specifying different forms of agreements, special provisions and incentivisation in order to increase performance, reduce risks and improve compensation methods.

The study can serve as a learning opportunity for construction project stakeholders internationally, and clients in particular, to differentiate between procurement routes, management‐oriented systems, relational contracting and incentivisation.

The research provides an original assessment of construction procurement which can be used as intervening tool in different levels of private and public procurement strategies.

Best value procurement (BVP) has been recognized for some time as offering significant opportunities to advance process excellence in the construction sector. As an innovative approach to strategic procurement, BVP has attracted attention from the New Zealand (NZ) Government. It has similarly been found that the most substantial benefit of this modified approach to procurement is in value creation and innovative organizational processes through identifying “best value.” Yet to date, there is a lack of robust evidence as to how BVP can exactly influence construction innovation. Accordingly, this paper aims to explore how to improve BVP implementation to promote construction innovation and what are the values to be achieved in BVP mega projects from the view of innovation.

Semi-structured interviews with 22 participants, including project managers, procurement specialists, engineers and general managers from three organization types, were conducted to explore BVP implementation in a range of mega construction projects in NZ.

Barriers to BVP implementation and value innovation have been identified in this paper. Data analysis suggested traditional mindset in the procurement process, market constraints, mistrusts and fuzzy definition of BVP are the challenges for BVP implementation; BVP cultivates organizational competition because of diverse collaboration models and value attitudes; and BVP considers more values from the whole supply chain. To promote innovative construction, existing BVP should consider adopting progressive enhancements toward updating procurement guidance, encouraging effective communications, collaborating and promoting changes in stakeholders’ mindset.

Identified barriers to BVP implementation set up a platform for framing guidance, which could provide an effective approach as it enables a better understanding of what BVP means to NZ and what needs to be overcome. Taking this into account, similar small size markets around the world would be able to consider the applicability of BVP for innovative improvements.

This paper provides insights into value concepts in project procurement. It theoretically and practically possesses originality in linking BVP to innovative construction. The study of BVP and its application further reveals the importance of establishing a distinct regulation and fostering organizational competition from value aspects to achieve construction innovation.

Social procurement policies are an emerging policy instrument being used by governments around the world to leverage infrastructure and construction spending to address intractable social problems in the communities they represent. The relational nature of social procurement policies requires construction firms to develop new collaborative partnerships with organisations from the government, not-for-profit and community sectors. The aim of this paper is to address the paucity of research into the risks and opportunities of entering into these new cross-sector partnerships from the perspectives of the stakeholders involved and how this affects collaborative potential and social value outcomes for intended beneficiaries.

This case study research is based on a unique collaborative intermediary called Connectivity Centre created by an international contractor to coordinate its social procurement strategies. The findings draw on a thematic analysis of qualitative data from focus groups with 35 stakeholders from the construction, government, not-for-profit, social enterprise, education and employment sectors.

Findings indicate that potentially enormous opportunities which social procurement offers are being undermined by stakeholder nervousness about policy design, stability and implementation, poor risk management, information asymmetries, perverse incentives, candidate supply constraints, scepticism, traditional recruitment practices and industry capacity constraints. While these risks can be mitigated through collaborative initiatives like Connectivity Centres, this depends on new “relational” skills, knowledge and competencies which do not currently exist in construction. In conclusion, when social procurement policy requirements are excessive and imposed top-down, with little understanding of the construction industry's compliance capacity, intended social outcomes of these policies are unlikely to be achieved.

This research draws on theories of cross-sector collaboration developed in the realm of public sector management to address the lack of research into how the new cross-sector partnerships encouraged by emerging social procurement policies work in the construction industry. Contributing to the emerging literature on cross-sector collaboration, the findings expose the many challenges of working in cross-sector partnerships in highly transitionary project-based environments like construction.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the influences of the characteristics of procurement strategies, in this instance labour-only, on project performance concerning health and safety (H&S), a project performance indicator.

Using non-probability purposeful and snowballing sampling methods, questionnaires were used to collect data from construction professionals in Nigeria. This was then analysed using descriptive (frequency and mean scores) and inferential statistics (Mann–Whitney-U and Kendall's Tau_b tests).

The findings indicate a statistically significant negative correlation between ‘the level of client involvement and ‘fatalities' and a positive one with ‘conducting of health and safety risk assessment' and ‘conducting employee surveys on health and safety attitude’. Poor hygiene is found to be the worst lagging indicator, while conducting of inspection is the most adopted leading indicator of project health and safety performance. It also emerged that there is no significant difference in the health and safety performance of projects procured through the procurement strategy in urban and rural areas.

The study provides valuable insight into the complexities in H&S management due to the high level of client involvement in labour-only procurement system (LoPS) projects and the level of diversity in their responsibilities therein. It creates a fundamental direction for developing a detailed framework or guidance notes for client involvement in the integration of H&S into LoPS projects.

This is the first study that examines the influence of the characteristics of procurement strategy on project health and safety performance. Evidence in the literature shows that project delivery outcomes significantly improve if procurement is strategically used, including when it is considered early in projects. However, integrating H&S into procurement strategies has received little attention.

This paper aims to analyze regulation regarding sustainable construction procurement in Southeast Asia and provide a reconstruction of regulation regarding the sustainable construction procurement to prevent land degradation.

This was done through legal research methods, mainly historical and systematical interpretation. The approaches used in this paper are the conceptual approach, statute approach and comparative approach.

By analyzing the related legal norms, it can be understood that many nations in Southeast Asia do not have regulation regarding sustainable construction procurement. Between Indonesia, Singapore and Thailand, only Indonesia has a ministrial regulation that provides general norms regarding sustainable construction procurement. Regarding the reconstruction of regulation, the bare minimum standards consist of principle, indicators, pillar, the phases of the procurement, law enforcement, both preventive and repressive, and sustainable procurement committee.

This research is limited to regulation in Southeast Asian region. By analyzing the regulation, this paper will provide a reconstruction of regulations regarding sustainable construction procurement that will act as an ground rules. Having the same ground rules will create synergies between countries in Southeast Asia to apply the principles of sustainable procurement and move together toward to prevent land degradation.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first systematic legal research that compares regulations from three nations in Southeast Asia regarding sustainable construction procurement and also the first paper to provide reconstruction of regulation regarding sustainable construction procurement to prevent land degradation.

This study aimed at determining the decisive factors for achieving sustainable procurement in construction projects.

Questionnaire survey of principal stakeholders involved in construction project delivery within client, consulting and contracting organisations in Nigeria were conducted to assess stakeholders' perspectives on the decisive factors for achieving sustainable procurement in construction projects using importance weights. A total of 243 questionnaires were distributed and a response rate of 51% (123 questionnaires were adequately filled and returned) was achieved. Descriptive and inferential statistics were utilised in analysing elicited data.

The results from data analysis showed that “satisfaction – including workforce satisfaction and user satisfaction”, “value for money” and “creating a healthy, nontoxic environment – including high indoor air quality” were the top most three decisive factors for achieving sustainable procurement in construction projects in Nigeria.

An understanding of these decisive factors can help principal stakeholders in the construction industry of developing countries to facilitate the development of methods required in supporting the adoption of sustainable procurement practice.