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Rework has become an endemic feature of the procurement process in construction, which invariably leads to time and cost overruns in projects. Thus, in order to improve the performance of projects it is necessary to identify the causes and costs of rework. The research presented in this paper quantifies the causes, magnitude and costs of rework experienced in two Australian construction projects procured using different contractual arrangements. The causes and costs of rework projects are analyzed and discussed. The case study projects’ rework costs were found to be 3.15 per cent and 2.4 per cent of their contract value. Changes initiated by the client and end‐user, as well as errors and omissions in contract documentation, were found to be the primary causes of rework. Recommends that construction companies and consultant firms, particularly design consultants, implement quality management practices as well as place greater attention on the design development process, to prevent rework emerging during the project’s later stages.

Australian construction organisations have generally refrained from implementing quality management principles. As a result, little is known about the costs of poor quality and the impact it has on an organisation’s performance and competitiveness. With respect to rework, it is suggested that most organisations have learnt to accept it as part of their operations, inasmuch as they have not realised its true extent or its influence on their own and a project’s performance. This paper uses a case study approach to develop a series of benchmark metrics for the causes and costs of rework, which were derived from two construction projects that were procured by the same contractor using different procurement methods. From the findings a conceptual model for benchmarking and reducing rework throughout the quality‐chain is presented and discussed.

Rework is seen as an unnecessary effort of redoing a process or activity that was incorrectly implemented the first time. It is caused due to so many factors such as architect changing design during construction, or increase in client taste. The aim of this research is to assess the rework cost of selected building projects with a view to improving the project delivery process in Nigeria.

Historical data for the study were obtained with respect to information regarding rework cost, variation cost and additional work cost and were collected on 22 completed building projects. This was achieved through the convenience sampling method where ease of access to information regarding the projects is a major determinant.

It was concluded that there is a significant relationship between rework cost and initial cost, final cost, cost overrun, initial time, final time and time overrun. It was also observed that sub‐structure has the highest rework cost with 9.4 per cent of the total average project, followed by upper floor with 8.3 per cent, while the least on the rank is roof finishes with 4.8 per cent.

The study was limited to historical data of 22 completed public building projects in Ondo state, Nigeria.

The results indicate that there is relationship between rework costs, variation cost and additional work cost. The result also indicates that sub‐structure always has the highest percentage of building elements prone to rework with an approximate figure of 9.4 per cent of the total rework cost of building element.

After giving in‐depth coverage to the concept of rework cost in building projects by examining the effects of rework cost in relation to variation cost and additional work cost, it could be concluded that rework cost is observed in most projects in Nigeria based on the historical data and should be avoided as much as possible.

It was observed that rework cannot be totally eliminated; it was then recommended that it should be reduced to a minimum in the construction industry by consulting appropriate professionals at different stages of the project at the right time.

Rework represents the unnecessary effort of redoing a process or activity that is incorrectly implemented the first time. Using a structured questionnaire survey, the causes and costs of rework in 161 Australian construction projects were identified. Respondents were invited to indicate direct and indirect rework costs that would be subsequently combined to produce a total rework cost (TRC) figure. Stepwise linear multiple regression analysis was then used to determine a model that included an optimum mixture of significant variables that contributed or lead to a reduction in TRC for the projects sampled. The research revealed that rework per se can negatively influence project safety. Client initiated changes and ineffective use of information technology by the design professionals were identified as being significant variables contributing to rework occurrence. Contrary to an earlier presupposition, design scope freezing was also identified as being a significant factor that can contribute to rework.

This paper aims to take a forensic approach to identify the causal mechanisms of rework in a structural steel supply chain. Rework is an area that has received limited attention, yet it is a major contributor to time and cost overruns in projects. Design/methodology/approach – The research uses an interpretative case study approach to gain an understanding about how and why rework occurred. To determine the causal variables of rework the traditional scientific concept of causality founded on the mono‐causal model in the physical and biological sciences was subject to subtle changes, and adapted to a social context as construction projects are essentially complex social systems. In this instance causality was not considered to be linear, proportional or incremental, but multi‐dimensional whereby each factor is interrelated and multi‐causal in nature. Findings – The findings reveal that the cause of rework in this case was poor information flow and the absence of a quality focus. This was exacerbated by the sequential procurement process and fixed power structure of the contract, and as a consequence poor decision‐making, communication, integration and co‐ordination were experienced. Practical implications – The research has highlighted the need to re‐design the structure of supply chains in construction projects, especially if information and communication technologies are to be effectively used. A conceptual model was developed from the case study findings to illustrate the interconnectedness of factors affecting rework. This model can be used by organisations for reducing the incidence of rework. Originality/value – The research has identified key variables that can contribute to the incidence of rework in projects. A pragmatic model for reducing the incidence of rework is proposed. The model that is propagated will be of use to practitioners and researchers working within project environments.

It is generally accepted that organisational culture is capable of influencing how project organisation performs. It can also impact on how people set individual goals and objectives, perform their roles, tasks and deploy resources to achieve set objectives. The purpose of this paper is to examine the influence of organisational culture on the occurrence of rework in Nigerian construction industry.

The research adopted mixed method research using both quantitative and qualitative approaches to elicit information. Though, the result of the questionnaire survey was presented in this paper. Exploratory factor analysis was used to identify which variables measured attributes of the same underlying proportions, while descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis were used to establish the influence of organisational culture on rework.

The study identifies 14 factors as causes of rework from the result of factor analysis. The outcome also indicates that leadership style, success criteria and management style are important organisational culture dimensions. Poor management practices and lack of teamwork are found to be largely responsible for poor project delivery due to rework occurrence.

The research will be of significant benefit to both the academic and industry practitioners. The result of the research will provide academics with useful insights into the influence of organisational culture on project delivery by undertaking future research to inform better understanding. The research will also provide practitioners with good understanding of how culture within their organisations can influence the performance of their subordinates or employees. Further research is encouraged to investigate the influence of management and leadership style on project delivery in the context of Nigeria.

This study is the first attempt to investigate the influence of organisational culture on occurrence of rework empirically in the Nigerian construction industry. There is paucity of research focusing on this area as it affects project delivery.

Rework is detrimental to project outcomes. However, there is still a lack of attention about rework within the Malaysian construction industry. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effect of rework on schedule and cost performance, to explore the causes of rework and to propose effective measures to minimise the occurrence of rework in building construction projects in Malaysia.

Using a sample of 114 construction stakeholders consisting of 39 clients, 36 consultants and 39 contractors from the Klang Valley region, the authors investigated the variables on rework through a questionnaire survey. The level of importance of the causes and the potential solutions was ranked and correlated.

From the primary data analysis, the study on Malaysian building projects unveiled the cost of rework to range from 3.1 to 6.0 per cent of the project value and the schedule growth due to rework to range from 5.1 to 10.0 per cent. The significant causes of rework were identified and prioritised. The 18 causes were further categorised into five underlying dimensions by using a factor analysis. Effective rework reduction measures were also given. Finally, the relationships between the causes of rework and the potential solutions were identified using correlation tests.

While this study is limited to rework in Malaysian building construction, rework in infrastructure projects is a potential area to discover new causes and possible solutions.

This paper provides insights into the effects of rework to project outcomes, causes of rework and feasible solutions in reducing rework in building construction projects.

Rework has been the focal point of research; however, empirical studies on rework have been under-represented in the Malaysian construction industry. This paper seeks to fill the gap by conducting an in-depth investigation on rework in the context of Malaysia.

This study aims at identifying the main causes of change orders in highway construction projects, determining the factors that affect rework in highway construction projects, examining the relationship between change orders and rework and at developing a predictive model that will determine the impact of change orders on rework in highway construction projects in Palestine.

A questionnaire survey was used to identify the main change order causes and rework causes from the perspectives of contractors and consultants. The questionnaire contained 16 causes of change orders and 19 causes of rework which had been identified from the literature reviewed. The study also identifies the impact of change orders on rework based on data comprising 22 highway construction projects implemented in Palestine. Both descriptive and inferential statistics were used in analyzing the data.

The study concluded that the five most common causes of change orders can be identified as: change of project scope by owner (additional – enhancement), lack of coordination between construction parties; owner’s financial difficulties, change in materials, and errors and omissions in design. The study has also established that among the various factors that causes rework, non-conformance with specification requirements, scope changes, late design changes, lack of labor experience, lack of labor skills and improper subcontractor selection top the list. Using regression analysis, the results reveal a significant relationship between change orders and rework cost in highway construction projects in Palestine.

By ranking the various change orders causes and rework causes from the perspectives of consultants and contractors, the study provides a fresh perspective on an old chronic problem in the construction sector. This study has provided evidence on the most significant change orders causes and rework causes in the Palestinian highway construction, as well as the impact of change orders or rework on constructions sites. Finally, although this study is specific to the country of Palestine, its results can be applicable to other developing countries facing similar problems in their public construction sectors.

The results address the common causes of change orders and reworks in highway construction projects in Palestine. The results also address the relation between change orders and rework cost based on data collected from highway construction projects implemented in the West Bank in Palestine. This study is the first study conducted in the West Bank in Palestine to identify the change orders and reworks causes in highway construction projects.

Rework is a pervasive problem in the construction industry. While several studies have examined the relationship between rework and cost overruns, few have related rework to schedule performance impacts. As a result, the purpose of this paper is to assess rework in the construction industry and its impact on schedule performance. Additionally a discussion of the most probable causes for rework that affect schedule outcomes is presented, with some recommended solutions.

To achieve the objectives of the study, a questionnaire was developed and the responses from 32 companies in Singapore were analyzed. Furthermore, face-to-face interviews with six industry experts were conducted to get an in-depth understanding of the survey results.

The findings of this study revealed that rework is a leading factor affecting schedule performance and its occurrence is relatively high in the construction industry, with a significant contribution to construction schedule growth. It also identified certain root causes, namely design-related changes, poor design coordination and poor site management as factors that most negatively affect schedule performance.

It is anticipated that once companies recognize the causes for rework and their impacts on schedule, they will develop strategies to manage and prevent rework, ultimately allowing the industry to improve on project delivery schedule performance.

The purpose of this paper is to identify the main reworks and their causes in a case study of the ongoing mass housing project in Iran. Using the real data captured from the project, the most important causes for reworks have been computed and prioritized.

More than 900 non-conformance forms filled in the construction site have been used to categorize reworks. Then, the frequency and cost of each rework group in the project have been estimated. Finally, using these data, the primary classification and sorting of the main causes of reworks have been specified.

Results show “Poor site supervision and inspection” with 24 percent of costs had the most impact and “unclear project management process” with about 6 percent of costs had the least impact on the formation of non-conformances. “Cost of each incidence” (COI) ranged from 0.67 for “The need to categorize the complicated operations” to 1.86 for “Unclear project management process.”

The causes of rework which are not in contractor’s hand (like change orders from the client) have not been considered in this study.

Although some works have been done in rework causes, the key elements and causes of reworks in mass housing projects in developing countries have not been yet fully specified through the real data. Knowing the root causes of reworks can help project managers to remove them and reduce reworks costs in future projects. COI which is defined here for the first time and computed in a relative concept could be a good criterion to compare rework causes between two or more similar projects.