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Christopher Amoah and Demetri Steyn
Complying with the code of conduct by professionals in the construction industry worldwide has become a significant issue over the years. This has led to projects' failure…
Abstract
Purpose
Complying with the code of conduct by professionals in the construction industry worldwide has become a significant issue over the years. This has led to projects' failure, leading to losses to both the client and contractors. The study's objective is to identify the challenges of construction professionals in complying with their code of conduct and preventing corrupt practices.
Design/methodology/approach
Quantitative approach was used to collect empirical data by sending questionnaires to 56 construction professionals in South Africa. Data gathered were analysed through Excel statistical tool. Mean values were calculated for the quantitative data, whilst thematic content analyses were used to generate frequencies and percentages for qualitative data.
Findings
The findings indicate that construction professionals experience many unethical issues in their work duties such as inflated tender prices, overpricing the rates, tender-based kickbacks, bribes for projects, unethical methods of project execution, use of lower grade materials than specified, discrimination, among others. However, issues such as greediness, acceptance of corruption as usual practice, lack of knowledge about the code of conduct, the only way to get contracts, part of the process, and peer pressure create a challenge in complying with the code of conduct and preventing corrupt practices among construction professionals.
Practical implications
Construction professionals face many unethical and corrupt practices in their project management and execution, which they cannot overcome due to many factors. Therefore, there is the need to sensitise the professionals in the construction industry regarding their code of conduct as well as the danger associated with engaging in corrupt practices in their work and their implication on project performance.
Originality/value
The findings give an insight into the critical factors curtailing the construction professional's ability to comply with their code of conduct and be corrupt-free in their line of duty. Thus, professional associations can use the findings in guiding their members.
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In addressing the housing deficits for the less privileged citizens, the South African government began constructing social housing after coming to power in 1994. However, the…
Abstract
Purpose
In addressing the housing deficits for the less privileged citizens, the South African government began constructing social housing after coming to power in 1994. However, the construction of these houses is bedevilled with many issues; prominent among them are poor quality of the constructed houses. This study seeks to develop a quality management framework for achieving quality and efficiency in public-sector housing construction, a hallmark of the country's procurement goals.
Design/methodology/approach
Telephone interviews were conducted with construction professionals involved in constructing government social houses across South Africa, chosen randomly. The data gathered were analysed using the content analysis method.
Findings
The study found that the most significant cause of poor quality government-constructed social housing is multifaceted, categorised into project management-related, procurement-related, contractor-related, corruption-related and political-related.
Practical implications
Failure to develop and implement a quality management framework on government-constructed social housing leads to poor quality social housing.
Originality/value
The study has identified quality-related issues and has developed a Quality Management (QM) framework for the stakeholders involved in the construction of the houses to guide them in the project implementation process to ensure project success and quality standards.
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Tui McKeown and Robyn Cochrane
The purpose of this paper is to examine “black box” links between HRM innovations and organizational performance by investigating the perspective of a workforce often excluded…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to examine “black box” links between HRM innovations and organizational performance by investigating the perspective of a workforce often excluded from the HR realm. Professional Independent Contractors (IPros) play a vital role in achieving workforce flexibility and innovation. While the use of such arrangements has been examined often using a compliance-oriented lens, the authors explore the value of adding a commitment aspect.
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 375 IPros working in Australian organizations completed an online questionnaire distributed by a national business support services provider.
Findings
Results show organizational support significantly predicted work engagement and affective commitment. Self-efficacy, age and gender were also significant predictors.
Research limitations/implications
The cross-sectional nature of this study and reliance on self-reported data limit the reliability of the findings. In addition, the findings may be specific to the Australian labor market.
Practical implications
The study present the views of a difficult to reach population and the findings suggest by adopting an innovative hybrid commitment-compliance HR configuration, practitioners may positively increase desirable contractor outcomes.
Social implications
Concerns that organizational imperatives for efficiency, quality and high performance will be compromised by considering the human side of non-employee work arrangements are not supported. Indeed, as previously outlined, much of the concern with the employee/non-employee dichotomy is legally based and an artefact of a system of labor law that in many settings has failed to move with the times.
Originality/value
Few investigations of the impact of high commitment HRM practices have incorporated the perspective of professional, non-employees. While IPros are recipients of compliance focused contractor management practices, carefully integrated commitment-based HRM aspects have the potential to deliver positive outcomes for both individuals and organizations.
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Christopher Amoah and Hlatshwayo Nkosazana
Contract risk management has become a critical mission, as contract issues may lead to a loss of vast amounts of money to parties involved or cause project failure. This study…
Abstract
Purpose
Contract risk management has become a critical mission, as contract issues may lead to a loss of vast amounts of money to parties involved or cause project failure. This study sought to identify effective management strategies to mitigate construction contract issues that might emerge during construction.
Design/methodology/approach
A quantitative research approach was adopted for the study. Structured questionnaires made up of close-ended questions were distributed to construction professionals in South Africa via the SurveyMonkey platform. The data were then analysed using descriptive statistics.
Findings
The findings indicate that the critical sources of contract-related disputes are ambiguous definitions of the contract parties' scope of their rights and obligations, lack of precise arrangements regarding the calculation of contractual penalties for failure to meet the deadline, lack of detailed specification of the works and specific milestones, lack of provisions regulating changes to the project documentation during the construction stage, an excessive amount of contractual penalties on contractor's side and lack of provisions regarding the rules of performing additional and replacement works and their settlement. However, for these disputes to be effectively managed, strategies such as reduction uncertainties in project's phases, setting up contingency plans, construction guarantee, extension of time claims, payment guarantee, retention and escalation clause should be implemented by the parties involved.
Research limitations/implications
Even though the empirical study focused on construction professionals in South Africa, the findings could be applied to other countries outside of South Africa.
Practical implications
To effectively manage and prevent contract disputes from averting project failures and losses to parties involved in the contract, construction professionals need to be aware of strategies that must be implemented before and during the project execution. If well implemented, these strategies will help a construction project be successful and experience fewer contractual disputes.
Originality/value
The study has identified the knowledge gap concerning suitable contract risk management strategies available for implementation to effectively prevent any contract parties from losing money, time and project failure.
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Siraj Ahmed, Jukka Majava and Kirsi Aaltonen
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…
Abstract
Purpose
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.
Design/methodology/approach
A qualitative research approach with abductive reasoning was adopted. The empirical data were collected from the construction industry in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Findings
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.
Originality/value
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.
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Jardar Lohne and Frode Drevland
The purpose of the study presented is to outline an understanding of the question of who benefits from crime in the AEC industry. The perspective chosen is conceptual in nature…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the study presented is to outline an understanding of the question of who benefits from crime in the AEC industry. The perspective chosen is conceptual in nature, and therefore focusses professional roles rather than individuals and/or cases.
Design/Methodology/Approach
The methods chosen include literary studies and in-depth analysis of previous research carried out within the research project from which this publication stems. Being conceptual, it is, nevertheless, deeply grounded in practical, coordinated research.
Findings
The findings indicate that most actors would seem to profit from crime in the AEC industry. Decision-makers (owners, contractors and to a certain extent sub-contractors) seem the most likely to profit – structurally and/or individually – on such dubious activity. According to the analysis, controlling agencies – as institutions – tend to profit by rather than to suffer under such criminal activity. Blue collar workers (in particular legally employed workmen and FM-personnel) and society as a whole in general bear the burden of the costs inflicted.
Research Limitations/Implications
There is an urgent need for a reorientation of the activity of the controlling agencies, redirecting their focus of attention from simple working on controlling worksites to addressing in-depth organisational challenges and responsibilities.
Practical Implications
Several papers have been identified that discuss the downsides of criminal activity in the construction industry. This paper suggests how most actors – on individual level – may profit on criminal activity.
Originality/Value
Little seems to have been published on the subject of who is to actually gain and what there is to gain from crime in the AEC industry. This paper presents a contribution to this research gap.
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Shiwei Chen, Kailun Feng and Weizhuo Lu
This paper aims to provide decision support for precast concrete contractors about both precast concrete supply chain strategies and construction configurations.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to provide decision support for precast concrete contractors about both precast concrete supply chain strategies and construction configurations.
Design/Methodology/Approach
This paper proposes a simulation-based optimisation for supply chain and construction (SOSC) during the planning phase of PC building projects. The discrete event simulation is used to capture the characteristics of supply chain and construction processes, and calculate construction objectives under different plans. Particle swarm optimisation is combined with simulation to find optimal supply chain strategies and construction configurations.
Findings
The efficiency of SOSC is compared with the parametric simulation approach. Over 70 per cent of time and effort used to simulate and compare alternative plans is saved owing to SOSC.
Research Limitations/Implications
Building simulation model costs a lot of time and effort. The data requirement of the proposed method is high.
Practical Implications
The proposed SOSC approach can provide decision support for PC contractors by optimising supply chain strategies and construction configurations.
Originality/Value
This paper has two contributions: one is in providing a decision support tool SOSC to optimise both supply chain strategies and construction configurations, while the other is in building a prototype of SOSC and testing it in a case study.
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