82 research outputs found
Client-contractor collaboration in bouwteams: A contractor's perspective
No full textRecently, the Marktvisie (2016) expressed the need for more collaborative relationships based on equality and lately, a shift from adversarial to collaborative relationships is observed. The use of collaborative contracting strategies is increasing of which the bouwteam is an example. The bouwteam is a collaboration agreement during the design phase of a construction project, in which at least client, contractor, and designer work together to deliver a feasible and constructible design. Even though the contractor is involved early the client is still in charge of the project and has control over the design, indicating that client and contractor are dependent upon each other. The goal of this research is to identify contractor's perspectives of collaboration in bouwteam, in order to find a way for contractors to influence client-contractor collaboration in bouwteams to achieve successful project delivery. Three contractor's perspectives are identified with help of Q-methodology, including a Q-set of success factors for collaboration in bouwteams, and are called relationship first, early involvement of the right people, and structure first. Even though the perspective value collaboration differently, they share the belief that mutual trust and a clear defined scope of the bouwteam are most essential for collaboration in bouwteams. To indicate how contractors can influence client-contractor collaboration, strategies are designed based on the identified contractor's perspectives and implementation of them. Since each client is different and a client-specific approach is desirable, three clients are identified in literature and for each one a strategy is designed. Combined, the strategies form a strategic framework that can be used by contractors. To define a way for contractors to influence client-contractor collaboration, practical implications are established. For the contractor, it is important to define the scope early and clearly for successful project delivery. To achieve this, the contractor can identify the client charactertiscts of the involved client and determine the perspective of available personnel. The contractor's are a valuable reference for the contractor because they represent his playing field. The contractor can have a meeting with the client to elaborate on which success factors are most important for the bouwteam. With this information, the contractor can determine which perspectives are most appropriate to establish good collaboration. As a result, the contractor can develop a strategy and communicate this internally. For this, the strategic framework can be used as a guideline to give insights into possibilities and considerations. In doing so, relationship first and structure first are considered most suitable for good collaboration. Dependent on the client, the contractor can choose the right perspective to deploy to influence client-contractor collaboration to achieve successful project delivery. Nonetheless, in the end, defining the scope is one of the most important success factors for collaboration for the contractor, independent of the strategy to be develop. However, one has to question whether the bouwteam is a necessary approach for collaboration between client and contractor in a project. But even when this is not the case, the contractor's perspectives can stille be used since the collaborative principles from a contractor's perspective are similar. Civil Engineering | Construction Management and Engineerin
The influence of different contract types on the effectiveness of owner-contractor relationships in construction projects
No full textThe nature of working relationship between owner and contractor in engineering and construction projects is considered to have a major effect on the project performance. This research focuses on factors that may influence owner-contractor relationship effectiveness. Literature suggests that different types of contract, being one of these factors, tend to influence owner-contractor relationships. The aim of this research was is to clarify the role of different contract types on owner-contractor relationship effectiveness in industrial construction projects. A Q-methodology based study was performed to reveal the subjective perceptions of the project managers on the relative influence of various contract aspects and of other influencing factors of owner-contractor relationships. The influence of contract types on the relationships for project-specific situations was investigated by a project evaluation study. In this study, the relationship quality of four different projects was evaluated, using a relationship maturity assessment matrix. The research results show that contract type is not the tool to influence relationship effectiveness. The only contract aspects, which are identified as instrumental to improve the relationship, are contact aspects related to project structure specifying roles and responsibilities, and contract aspects about targeted criteria for performance.Management of TechnologyTechnology, Strategy and EntrepreneurshipTechnology, Policy and Managemen
Contractor cooperation mechanism and evolution of the green supply chain in mega projects
No full textThe large scale of construction in mega projects leads to significant environmental and socioeconomic impacts; thus, the projects should also exhibit greater social responsibility. Adopting green supply chain management in the construction process is an important way to realize the goal of sustainable development of mega projects. Because the green supply chain behavior during construction is mainly demonstrated by contractors, it is especially important to study the evolutionary trend of their behavior. Thus, to explore the cooperative relationship among contractors, this paper considers a lengthy construction period, multi-agent participation dynamics, and opportunistic behavior-all are key features of mega projects-and establishes an evolutionary game model. Specifically, a replicator dynamic equation is used to describe the long-term effects of the contractor's decisions. Equilibrium determinants are then analyzed and simulated. The results show that the initial probabilities of the two types of contractors (main contractor and subcontractor) demonstrating opportunistic behaviors have a significant effect on the direction of evolution of the mega project. The main contractor, who dominates the subsidy allocation by the government and project owner, should pay attention to maintaining a balance in the income distribution between him or her and the subcontractor. Additionally, there is an optimal distribution coefficient for the subsidy that minimizes the overall probability of opportunistic behavior. This paper provides a point of reference for the decisions of the main contractor and the subcontractor in the green supply chain of mega projects.Integral Design & Managemen
The Influence of External Factors on Client-Contractor Collaboration: And how to anticipate their impact up-front
No full textIn modern construction, collaboration has become a key element for the success of projects. Both clients and contractors are aware of the importance of maintaining a solid relationship. However, as collaboration is subject to ambiguous factors that influence both the content of the project and the social elements, it is proven to be difficult to achieve this mission. Elemental differences in the goals, ambitions and responsibilities of clients and contractors during projects still exist and cause differences in perception. One of the elements collaborations are subject to, are external factors. These are especially hard to deal with due to the fact that the occurrence of said factors is beyond the control of the project team. This research provides insight in this volatile environment with the aim to increase the resilience of collaborations by answering the question: “What external factors are present during construction projects that influence the collaboration between client and contractors and how can the impact of these events be reduced up-front?”. To answer this question, a Q-study is performed. As input for this study, a model of the project environment distinguishing the internal and external project environment is created. The model defines 8 domains of external factors which influence client-contractor collaboration: economic, technological and political -context, the parent organisation of both client and contractor, subcontractors, related projects & surroundings and lastly the stakeholders. From the Q-study four perspectives on external factors are retrieved, confirming the difference in perception of the external factors for individuals, based on their respective role and organisations in the collaboration. To reduce the influence of external factors on the dynamics within the project team, a framework of measures to create resilient collaborations is composed. The measures are divided in three categories: preliminary organisation, creating flexibility and attention to soft side. Each category is elaborated on with specific measures and which domains are addressed by implementing these measures. Moreover, the implementation in the project life cycle is explained making the framework directly usable for project organisations.Civil Engineering | Construction Management and Engineerin
Mutagenic activity of gastric fluid from chewers of tobacco with lime
No full textAlthough tobacco chewing is strongly associated with a high risk of oral and upper alimentary tract cancers, the nature of mutagenic exposure among users has not been clearly defined. In this study, tobacco-specific and mutagenic exposure of chewers of tobacco with lime was evaluated by analysis of gastric fluid (GF). The pH, nitrite and cotinine levels of GF samples from chewers and non-chewers were determined and the samples were tested for mutagenicity in the Ames Sahnonella/microsome assay using Salmonella typhimurium strains TA98, TA100 and TA102. Cotinine was not detected in GF from non-chewers while the levels ranged between 0.4-13.64 μg/ml in samples from chewers; however, the mean pH values (3.8 ± 0.4 versus 2.8 ± 0.3) and nitrite levels (29.40 ± 1.51 versus 27.39 ± 0.83 μM) were similar in both groups. While all GF samples from non-chewers were non-mutagenic, samples from chewers were directly mutagenic or upon nitrosatlon to all the three tester strains and to TA102 strain in the presence of S9. Experiments using scavengers of reactive oxygen species (ROS) showed that mannitol and benzoate abolished the mutagenic response of TA102, indicating that ROS are principally responsible for oxidative damage. The findings provide specific information regarding the mutagenic exposure among tobacco chewers and suggest that tobacco chewing may be an important risk factor in the development of gastric cancer
Using critical success factors and Q methodology to discover perspectives on project risk management within a construction organisation
No full textRisk management is a vital process in the construction of large projects. It is necessary to protect the success of the project, the budget, the project timeline and the reputation of an organisation. Alongside the tools and techniques which exist to support risk management, it is also a process which depends on people’s opinions, decisions and how they follow procedures. This study sought to identify the perspectives which exist amongst a group of managers from a main contractor organisation with respect to what is important to risk management. First, a literature study was performed to identify the critical success factors (CSFs) of risk management. Next, Q methodology was used to collect data from 15 managers, five from each of the three different functional teams within the same construction project. The managers were asked to sort the CSFs, from least to most important, according to their opinion on what is important to project risk management. Finally, after the Q sort activity, each manager was interviewed and asked to motivate their choices. The main result of this research was the three perspectives discovered through the Q study. These perspectives are known as Experience and Belief, Procedures and Leaders and Culture and Communication. The names reflect the CSFs which the perspective judged to be most important. The perspectives contained six, five and three respondents respectively and there was one respondent who did not belong to any of the perspectives. On average, across all respondents, “project organisation risk culture” was ranked as the most important and “regular training to enhance risk management skills” was ranked as the least important. It was found to be borderline significant that four of the managers from the design team belonged to the perspective Procedures and Leaders. The results of the research were used to make recommendations to the organisation to improve their risk management. Future research could include repeating the study with a larger and more diverse group of respondents and investigating the links between perspectives and other personal characteristics such as gender and personality type.Civil Engineering | Construction Management and Engineerin
De-mystifying the Muslimah: Exploring Different Perceptions of Selected Young Muslim Women in Britain
No full textIn this research I argue that although Islam as a faith is inherently emancipatory, Muslim
women are doubly marginalised: by patriarchal interpretations of their faith within Muslim
communities and by pluralist society that often does not understand the faith-based values
and practices of Muslim women. The empowerment of Muslim women is crucial not just for
the women themselves but also for socio-political dynamics within the Muslim community
and its relationships in pluralist society. It is from this context, and acknowledging the paucity
of academic literature written by Muslim women, that I set out to give voice to them, so that
their opinions may be heard in discourses that they think are relevant to their lives. By
encouraging Muslim women to take voice and by facilitating mechanisms for these voices to
be heard, this research presents alternate narratives of Muslim women that challenge
dominant media imagery of the oppressed and subjugated Muslim woman. These narratives,
which are by and for Muslim women, portray instead the inherent diversity in the category
'Muslim woman' and thus add more facets to the category 'woman'.
I used an ethnographic methodology that involved participants as contributors in the creation
of new knowledge. Semi-structured interviews with 45 young university-educated Muslim
women and 7 group discussions were used as initial data-gathering tools. The penultimate
ethnographic stage involved Muslim women creating 3-minute long self-representational
digital stories (DSTs), which consist of an autobiographical narrative accompanied by still
pictures. This was a process of self-reflection for the women and an opportunity to take voice
and to be heard. The subsequent screening of these DSTs to audiences who were not
Muslim resulted in discussion and active debate about the reasons for prevalent
(mis)understandings of Muslim women and stereotypes were challenged. In its initiation of
more balanced representations of Muslim women this research empowers Muslim women,
and by contributing to dialogue and cohesion it also empowers pluralist society as a whole.
This research clarifies the overlapping priorities and identities of young British Muslim
women and initiates new discourses, as narrated by the women, on subjects including
religious interpretation and practice, feminism, media representation and social cohesion. In
the research findings I propose an evolving British-Muslim identity among Muslim youth (in
this case young women) which is distinct from that of their parents; a theological articulation
of a 'feminist' struggle for women's rights; and the need to engage with the media and others
to create positive representations of Muslim women. Experiences with DSTs indicate the
potential of personal narratives and interaction for the purposes of inter-community dialogue
The lack of design quality focus in construction: a case for examining suitable design processes
No full textA large number of projects in UK construction now involve contractor-led design and are thus very different from the traditional approach which formed the basis of the original Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Outline Plan of Work. Such integrated and contractor-led approaches support the reform agenda of the late 1990s that was introduced to tackle process inefficiency. However, within the design professions there has been concern that this resulted in buildings that were designed-down to a cost rather than designed-up to a value. An attempt to address this resulted in the formation of the Commission for Architecture and Built Environment (CABE) in 1999 and the launch, in 2003, of the Design Quality Indicator (DQI) which measures how well a building satisfies stakeholders. This paper presents the early phases of doctoral research which will examine the impact of integrated design management approaches upon Design Quality
Public project manager's perspective on project success: A research into the success determination of construction projects by project managers of the public party
No full textParties working together on a project usually have different interests in executing that project, but they all aim at achieving project success. This project success has been widely discussed in literature since reaching it is the main goal of each party; but what project success actually is and how it can be determined differs per party. In project success a distinction is made between success criteria, the set of standards by which the measurement of success occurs, and success factors, those aspects that directly or indirectly influence project success. In this research success criteria are studied. Currently there is a lot of literature on project success and also on its criteria, but it only very limitedly relates to the public sector. Which is remarkable since researchers agree that project success is dependent on the perspective taken to look at it: an architect may have a different view on when a project is a success than a contractor. The proposition is that, due to the difference in nature of organization between public and private parties, each uses its own set of success criteria for the judgement of its project success. This research focuses on the public project manager: the operational manager of the public party who is commissioned within his own organisation to carry out the assignment; in this role he represents the ‘client’ to the contracting parties with which he has contact in executing the project. As mentioned project success perception depends on the perspective taken to judge it; and if there is indeed a different success perception for a public party than for a private party this discrepancy will become most clear at the operational level, where they work in close contact. This research aims at closing the now existing knowledge gap and identifying the success criteria relevant for the public project manager. By means of Q-methodology, a method used for studying subjectivity, the view on project success of 28 interviewed public project managers was assembled and analysed. The first step in using this method was to determine the Q-sample: the complete list of criteria relevant for the public project manager. To determine the public project manager’s view on success the 28 managers were asked to rank these criteria in relation to their importance in determining project success. This list of relevant criteria was formulated through studying literature and executing five test interviews; firstly 25 criteria were distinguished of which the representativeness for the public sector was checked. Eventually a number of criteria were combined, a number of criteria was left out due to lack of relevance for public project managers and a few other criteria were added, leading to a final list consisting of 19 criteria. In determining this Q-sample, two important conclusions were drawn. Firstly, since literature focuses mainly on the private sector, many criteria are too commercially oriented to reflect the public organisation’s nature; in these cases the public equivalent of the private sector criterion is determined. Secondly, a number of criteria presumed to be relevant for public sector success determination are not found in literature. These new criteria were added to the Q-sample and their relevance can be determined after the research has been conducted.Construction Management and EngineeringStructural EngineeringCivil Engineering and Geoscience
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