19 research outputs found
The determinants of multinational contractors' willingness to bid for Australian public sector major infrastructure projects : towards deploying the eclectic paradigm of internationalisation
No full textAgainst a background of already thin markets in some sectors of major public sector infrastructure in Australia and the desire of Australian federal government to leverage private finance, concerns about ensuring sufficient levels of competition are prompting federal government to seek new sources of in-bound Foreign Direct Income. The aim of this paper is to justify and develop a means to deploying the eclectic paradigm of internationalisation that forms part of an Australian federally funded research project designed to explain the determinants of multinational contractors' willingness to bid for Australian public sector major infrastructure projects. Despite the dominance of the eclectic paradigm as a theory of internationalisation for over two decades, it has seen limited application in terms of multinational construction. It is expected that the research project will be the first empirical study to deploy the eclectic paradigm to inbound FDI to Australia whilst using the dominant economic theories advocated for use within the eclectic paradigm. Furthermore, the research project is anticipated to yield a number of practical benefits. These include estimates of the potential scope to attract more multinational contractors to bid for Australian public sector infrastructure, including the nature and extent to which this scope can be influenced by Australian governments responsible for the delivery of infrastructure. On the other hand, the research is also expected to indicate the extent to which indigenous and other multinational contractors domiciled in Australia are investing in special purpose technology and achieving productivity gains relative to foreign multinational contractors
Modelling contractor's and subcontractor's trust : a system dynamics approach
No full textA general mistrust within the contactor and subcontractor companies has identified one of the\ud
significant barriers to derive benefits from true downstream supply chain integration. Using\ud
the general theory of trust in inter-organizational relations and conducting interviews, this\ud
research discusses factors that influence development of trust and cooperation in contractor–\ud
subcontractor relationships in construction projects. System dynamics is the simulation\ud
method is selected in this theory-building effort, based on qualitative data collected from two\ud
projects of a construction company in Thailand. Performance, permeability and system based\ud
trust are found to make significant contributions toward parties’ trust level. Three\ud
strategic policies such as best value contracting, management of subcontractors as internal\ud
team and semi project partnering approach are recommended to stimulate the trust factors as\ud
well as cooperative long term relationship
A first stage test of Dunning's framework on multinational contracting into Australia : reviewing secondary data.
No full textIn response to the need to leverage private finance and the lack of competition in some parts of the Australian public sector infrastructure market, especially in the very large economic infrastructure sector procured using Pubic Private Partnerships, the Australian Federal government has demonstrated its desire to attract new sources of in-bound foreign direct investment (FDI). This paper aims to report on progress towards an investigation into the determinants of multinational contractors’ willingness to bid for Australian public sector major infrastructure projects. This research deploys Dunning’s eclectic theory for the first time in terms of in-bound FDI by multinational contractors into Australia. Elsewhere, the authors have developed Dunning’s principal hypothesis to suit the context of this research and to address a weakness arising in this hypothesis that is based on a nominal approach to the factors in Dunning's eclectic framework and which fails to speak to the relative explanatory power of these factors. In this paper, a first stage test of the authors' development of Dunning's hypothesis is presented by way of an initial review of secondary data vis-à-vis the selected sector (roads and bridges) in Australia (as the host location) and with respect to four selected home countries (China; Japan; Spain; and US). In doing so, the next stage in the research method concerning sampling and case studies is also further developed and described in this paper. In conclusion, the extent to which the initial review of secondary data suggests the relative importance of the factors in the eclectic framework is considered. It is noted that more robust conclusions are expected following the future planned stages of the research including primary data from the case studies and a global survey of the world’s largest contractors and which is briefly previewed. Finally, and beyond theoretical contributions expected from the overall approach taken to developing and testing Dunning’s framework, other expected contributions concerning research method and practical implications are mentioned
Towards testing the eclectic paradigm on multinational contracting: an approach to reviewing and analysing secondary data
No full textIn response to the need to leverage private finance and the lack of competition in some parts of the Australian public sector major infrastructure market, especially in very large economic infrastructure procured using Pubic Private Partnerships, the Australian Federal government has demonstrated its desire to attract new sources of in-bound foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Australian construction market. This paper aims to report on progress towards an investigation into the determinants of multinational contractors’ willingness to bid for Australian public sector major infrastructure projects and which is designed to give an improved understanding of matters surrounding FDI into the Australian construction sector. This research deploys Dunning’s eclectic theory for the first time in terms of in-bound FDI by multinational contractors and as head contractors bidding for Australian major infrastructure public sector projects. Elsewhere, the authors have developed Dunning’s principal hypothesis associated with his eclectic framework in order to suit the context of this research and to address a weakness arising in Dunning’s principal hypothesis that is based on a nominal approach to the factors in the eclectic framework and which fail to speak to the relative explanatory power of these factors. In this paper, an approach to reviewing and analysing secondary data, as part of the first stage investigation in this research, is developed and some illustrations given, vis-à-vis the selected sector (roads, bridges and tunnels) in Australia (as the host location) and using one of the selected home countries (Spain). In conclusion, some tentative thoughts are offered in anticipation of the completion of the first stage investigation - in terms of the extent to which this first stage based on secondary data only might suggest the relative importance of the factors in the eclectic framework. It is noted that more robust conclusions are expected following the future planned stages of the research and these stages including primary data are briefly outlined. Finally, and beyond theoretical contributions expected from the overall approach taken to developing and testing Dunning’s framework, other expected contributions concerning research method and practical implications are mentioned
Developing the eclectic paradigm of internationalization on the issue of multinational contractors bidding for Australian infrastructure
No full textAgainst a background of already thin markets in some sectors of major public sector infrastructure in Australia and the desire of the Australian federal government to leverage private finance, concerns about ensuring sufficient levels of competition are prompting federal government to seek new sources of in-bound foreign direct income - as part of attracting more foreign contractors and consortia to bid for Australian public sector major infrastructure. As a first step towards attracting greater overseas interest in the Australian public sector market infrastructure market, an improved understanding of the determinants of multinational contractors’ willingness to bid in this market is offered by Dunning’s eclectic paradigm and which have has been a dominant approach in international business for over 20 years and yet has been little used in the context of international contracting. This paper aims to develop Dunning’s eclectic framework and also gives a brief outline of a research plan to collect secondary data and primary data from international contractors around the globe in pursuance of testing the eclectic framework
Development of a performance model for international construction joint venture : a system dynamics approach
No full textThe uncertain and dynamic nature of International Construction Joint Venture (ICJV) performance is evolved with many critical factors which lead to make partner relationships more complex in respect of making decisions to maintain a cohesive environment. Addressing to the fact, a generic system dynamics performance model for ICJV is developed by integrating a number variables as to get an overall impact on performance of ICJV and to make effective decisions based on that. In order to formulate and validate the model both structurally and behaviourally, both qualitative and quantitative data are gathered by conducting intensive interviews from two ICJVs in Thailand. After conducting intensive simulations of model, three major problems are identified related to negative value gap, low productivity in construction and high rate of ineffective information sharing of both ICJVs. Several policies are suggested and integrated application of these policies provides a maximum improvement to performance of the ICJV
Completion of potential conflicts of interest through optimization of Rukoh reservoir operation in Pidie District, Aceh Province, Indonesia
No full textPriority Handling of Teurebeh Irrigation Assets, Aceh Besar District, Aceh Province
No full textTeurebeh Irrigation scheme is one of the promising irrigation areas in Aceh Besar District, Aceh Province. It is also one of the buffers in the agricultural sector, covering 750 hectares of agricultural area. However, the construction has shrunk over time, and the evaluation at the end of 2020 classified it as "Poor Performance and Requiring Attention." This study aims to determine the handling priority for the irrigation networks at the Teurebeh Irrigation scheme. Data on irrigation network inventory was used as input. The determination of handling priority was conducted using the MannWhitney method. The ranking for determining the priority of irrigation assets is based on the condition and function of the irrigation assets. ArcGIS and Google Earth software were used to determine the condition and handling of all assets. The results show that the handling priority levels are between the primary and secondary channels. The priority for handling irrigation structure in the secondary channel is for two tapping structures, and one divider structure are ranked 1 to 3. They must be fixed immediately as severe to moderately damaged conditions are not functioning correctly. Furthermore, the priority for handling irrigation structure in the primary channel is for two bridges, and one divider structure are within priority 1 to 3. The Mann-Whitney test on the proposed hypothesis comparing the urgency level between the two channels is insignificant, indicating no significant difference between the handling of primary and secondary channels, as both have similar conditions and functions. The results are expected to contribute to decision-making at the Irrigation Department in designing proposals for renovating irrigation networks
Effects of design consistency on run-off-road crashes: An application of a Random Parameters Negative Binomial Lindley model
No full textRun-off-road crashes are one of the most common crash types, especially in rural roadway environments contributing significantly to fatalities and severe injuries. These crashes are complex and multi-dimensional events, and factors like road geometry, driver behaviour, traffic characteristics and roadside features contribute to their occurrence, separately or interactively. Sudden changes in road geometry, in particular, can influence driver behaviour, and therefore, in developing a micro-level crash risk model for run-off-road crashes, one of the challenges is incorporating the effects of driver behaviour (disaggregated information) that may arise from the variations in road geometry (aggregated information). This study aims to examine the interaction between road geometry and driver behaviour through a set of measures for design consistency on two-lane rural roads. Multiple data sources, including crash data for 2014–18, traffic data, probe speed data and roadway geometric data, for twenty-three highways in Queensland, Australia, have been fused for this study. Seventeen types of design consistency measures with regard to alignment consistency, operating speed consistency and driving dynamics are tested. A run-off-road crash risk model is estimated by employing the Random Parameters Negative Binomial Lindley regression framework, which accounts for excess zeros in the crash counts and captures the effects of unobserved heterogeneity in the parameter estimates. Results indicate that the geometric design consistency capturing the interaction between driver behaviour and operational factors better predicts run-off-road crashes along rural highways. In addition, roadside attributes like clear zone width, infrastructures, terrain, and roadway remoteness also contribute to run-off-road crashes. The findings of the study provide a comprehensive understanding of the influence of variations in roadway geometry on driver behaviour and run-off-road crashes along rural highways
Labour Skills Shortages in the Construction Industry of Bangladesh
No full textLabour Skills Shortages in the Construction Industry of Banglades
