Assessment of factors influencing the failure and abandonment of multi-storey building projects in Nigeria

2018 ◽  
Vol 36 (2) ◽  
pp. 210-231 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmanuel Oluwatobi Adebisi ◽  
Stephen Okunola Ojo ◽  
Oluwaseyi Olalekan Alao

PurposeThe failure and abandonment of construction projects have proven to be insurmountable problems incessantly militating against the efficient performance of the construction industry in Nigeria. The complexity, technicality and a host of other project execution issues unique to multi-storey building projects do increase their susceptibility to failure and abandonment. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to examine the factors influencing failure and abandonment of multi-storey building projects in Nigeria. This is with a view to provide inferential empirical data that could enhance successful delivery of multi-storey building projects in Nigeria.Design/methodology/approachPrimary data were used for the study. A structured questionnaire was administered on consultants and contractors’ personnel within Lagos State, Nigeria. A total of 180 copies of the questionnaire were administered ,and 134 copies which represent a combined response rate of 74.4 per cent were retrieved. The data were analysed using frequency distribution and percentages, Mean item score and factor analysis.FindingsThe factors most significant to the failure and abandonment of multi-storey building projects are inadequate funding by the client, improper planning at the pre-construction phase, structural failure in multi-storey building during construction, bankruptcy/business failure of the contractor, improper scheduling of the building project activities and failure to engage qualified professionals with technical expertise and experience. The rated factors clustered under human resources capability, planning and structural quality, contractor selection and variation, insecurity and variation, and force majeure and political risk.Research limitations/implicationsThe study was limited to multi-storey building projects in Lagos State, Nigeria. Further studies could focus on specific resuscitation strategies for abandoned multi-storey building projects.Practical implicationsThe study provided implications for effective project and contract management of multi-storey building projects which is very paramount to improve the delivery of complex, technical- and capital-intensive building projects in Nigeria.Originality/valueThe study provides specific implications for the management of multi-storey building projects, thereby enhancing the delivery of building projects.

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 503-521 ◽  
Author(s):  
Akintayo Opawole ◽  
Solomon Olusola Babatunde ◽  
Kahilu Kajimo-Shakantu ◽  
Oluwatumininu A. Ateji

PurposeLife cycle costing (LCC) has become increasingly important in construction projects over the last decades. However, limited empirical studies have been carried out on the factors influencing its application in building projects, particularly in developing countries. The purpose of this study is to address this gap in knowledge within the Nigerian context.Design/methodology/approachPrimary data were used through the administration of questionnaires to practising quantity surveying firms in Lagos State, Nigeria. The data obtained were analysed using both descriptive and inferential statistical tools including percentages, mean item score and factor analysis.FindingsThe study identified 47 barriers to the application of LCC, and the analysis of the ranking revealed that 35 (of 47) identified barriers were considered important. Factor analysis grouped the identified barriers into four key factors namely, professional incompetence; cost implications; administrative factor and procurement options.Practical implicationsThis research is important by providing the empirical evidence on the barriers to the application of LCC in developing countries, particularly in Nigeria. For instance, the identification of important barriers to LCC use will enlighten the construction professionals to be trained in the practicalities of LCC. Moreover, the study provides implications for construction stakeholders (including governments) to draw policy recommendations that will positively improve the use of LCC in the construction industry, especially in developing countries.Originality/valueThe study will be beneficial to all the construction stakeholders by broadening their awareness about the barriers to LCC use in Nigeria and developing countries at large.


Author(s):  
Argaw Tarekegn Gurmu ◽  
Ajibade Ayodeji Aibinu

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify and prioritize management practices that have the potential to improve labor productivity in multi-storey building construction projects. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted two-phase mixed-methods research design and 58 project managers, contract administrators and project coordinators were involved in the survey. During Phase I, qualitative data were collected from 19 experts using interviews and the management practices that could enhance labor productivity in multi-storey building construction projects were identified. In Phase II, quantitative data were collected from 39 contractors involved in the delivery of multi-storey building projects by using questionnaires. The data were analyzed to prioritize the practices identified in Phase I. Findings Well-defined scope of work, safety and health policy, safety and health plan, hazard analysis, long-lead materials identification, safe work method statement, and toolbox safety meetings are the top seven practices that have the potential to improve labor productivity in multi-storey building projects. Originality/value The research identifies the management practices that can be implemented to enhance labor productivity in multi-storey building construction projects in the context of Australia. Being the first study in the Australian context, the findings can be used as benchmark for international comparison.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy Oluwafemi Ayodele ◽  
Oluseyi Joshua Adegoke ◽  
Kahilu Kajimo-Shakantu ◽  
Olaitan Olaoye

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to evaluate the soft skill gap of graduate employees, as well as the factors influencing the skill gaps of real estate graduates in the employment of real estate firms in Nigeria.Design/methodology/approachPrimary data were employed for the study. Close-ended questionnaire served on real estate employers in the two major property markets of Nigeria: Lagos and Abuja. From a total of 343 questionnaires administered, 172 (59.7%) questionnaires were retrieved. While data from the graduate employees were obtained via a web-based survey sent out to a total of 558 graduates, 119 (21.33%) responses were received. Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were employed in the data analysis.FindingsThe findings showed that employers had high expectations for soft skillsets relating to responsibility, administrative, listening and communication skills. These have respective mean scores of 6.38, 6.33, 6.31 and 6.31 on a seven point scale. However, the results revealed significant skill gaps with skills such as logical thinking, business negotiation, responsibility and marketing. Further, the analysis revealed that factors influencing the skill gap, in decreasing order of influence, are training/professional mentors/remuneration, personal preferences/industry characteristics and curriculum/faculties.Practical implicationsReal estate graduate soft skills are investigated to uncover areas of emphasis and skill gaps. These outcomes could serve as important feedbacks for stakeholders towards improving real estate teaching and curriculum. The findings could also assist real estate graduates to know employers areas of emphasis in relation to graduate employability skills.Originality/valueExtant studies have reiterated and evaluated the soft skills gaps based on the perceptions of employers, faculties and institutions of higher learning. However, there is the need to investigate the perception of graduate employees, being the recipient and major stakeholders in the training process.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Muhammad Junaid Khawaja ◽  
Zainab Nasser Alharbi

PurposeThe objective of the study is to determine the factors influencing the behavior of investor in Saudi Stock Market.Design/methodology/approachThe paper uses correlation analysis, factor analysis, reliability and multiple regression analysis on the primary data collected from 125 investors in Saudi Stock Market through a questionnaire distributed randomly.FindingsThe results indicate that the factors like past performance of the stocks, financial statements, firm status in industry, the reputation of the firm, and expected corporate earnings have significant influence on the behavior of investors. The factor of the image that a certain company has built for itself over the years on the basis of its financial practices is a large influencer of investor decisions as compared to advocate recommendation factors. The investment behavior is not significantly influenced by gender or age; however, it is significantly influenced by educational qualification, professional experience and investment volume.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper limits itself to study the factors that influence the behavior of investors. However, it does not address the issue of investor overconfidence and its implications for Saudi Stock Market.Practical implicationsThis research provides a road map for the investors interested in making their investment decisions by understanding the most influencing factors.Social implicationsThis research has social implications for government agencies to delineate the required legislation to regulate the investors and also to increase market efficiency. The results show that investors are strongly affected by signals from the government.Originality/valueThis research is an original contribution toward the behavioral finance field in Saudi Arabia and can be used as a reference material for investors, companies and government policymakers in Saudi Arabia. This study incorporates investors' individual characteristics and explores factors that influence investor behavior unlike some previous studies using Saudi data.


2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Innocent Musonda ◽  
Nuru Gambo

PurposeThe procurement strategy challenges that influence the development of sustainable smart housing require a holistic system approach that models the relationships between procurement strategies and sustainable smart housing development approach. This considers the use of technology partnering to ensure value for money. The purpose of the paper is to assess the mediation effect of the technology partnership on procurement strategy influencing sustainable smart housing development.Design/methodology/approachThis study used a quantitative approach and primary data were collected via a structured questionnaire. In total, 500 survey questionnaires were administered to project managers in the Nigerian construction industry and a stratified proportionate random sampling method was used for the selection of respondents.FindingsThe results indicated that the procurement strategy influenced sustainable smart housing development in Nigeria, and the technology partnership mediates the relationship between procurement strategy and sustainable smart housing development.Research limitations/implicationsThis quantitative study is based on the perception of construction project managers in Nigeria. The findings serve as an awareness of the government and other stakeholders in the construction industry on the development of sustainable smart housing in Nigeria.Practical implicationsThe study establishes that technology partnership mediates the relationship between procurement strategy factors and sustainable smart housing development through enhancement of smart housing development and serves as awareness to stakeholders on the factors influencing smart housing development in Nigeria.Social implicationsThe study suggests that technology partnership influences the effect of procurement strategy factors on sustainable smart housing and hence improves the development of smart housing in developing countries.Originality/valueMediation roles of technology partnership minimize procurement strategy challenges and enhance sustainable smart housing development.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fadi A. Fatayer ◽  
Amjad Z. Issa ◽  
Mohammed Abunemeh ◽  
Mohammed A.M. Dwikat

PurposeConstruction contractors in Palestine, as in many other developing countries, suffer from many problems. One of their main problems is their inability to meet contractual requirements, such as completing projects within time, at the agreed cost and to the desired quality. Therefore, this paper aims to investigate the causes of the non-fulfillment of contractual requirements in three different types of projects: building, road and electro-mechanical projects.Design/methodology/approachTwo methods were adopted to collect the data – qualitative and quantitative. In total, 65 causes were identified from the literature and qualitative semi-structured interviews with professional experts. These causes were classified into five categories: managerial, financial, contractor capabilities, regulations and laws and political. In the quantitative approach, a questionnaire was developed and then distributed to 50 professional experts: 20 building experts, 15 road experts and 15 experts in electro-mechanical projects. A five-point Likert scale was used to assess the importance, from the perspective of the subject matter experts, of the causes that had been identified. About 35 responses, which represent a combined response rate of 70%, were received. The quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, with the mean, standard deviation and degree of importance for each of the identified causes being determined, and the SPSS software platform used to rank them.FindingsThe results reveal that the most important reasons why contractors did not fulfill their contractual requirements in building projects were that contracts were awarded to the contractor offering the lowest price, and the profit margin was low because of intense competition among contractors. In road projects, the most important causes were the poor estimation of the equipment required and a lack of standardized conditions in the construction sector, while in electro-mechanical projects, the most important causes were the inability of the contractor to estimate the cost of the project accurately because of unclear bid documents and a lack of contractor capital.Originality/valueThe results of this study will be useful to stakeholders and Palestinian contractor unions. They can be disseminated to give guidance so that contractors can avoid these problems in future construction projects and enhance their compliance with contractual requirements. Moreover, knowing about these causes may lead to the reduction of conflicts and disputes between contractual parties (owners and contractors), which in turn will be reflected in the work quality and reputation of contractors.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Bamidele Temitope Arijeloye ◽  
Isaac Olaniyi Aje ◽  
Ayodeji Emmanuel Oke

Purpose The purpose of the study is to elicit risk factors that are peculiar to public-private partnership (PPP)-procured mass housing in Nigeria from the expert perspectives in ensuring the success of the scheme thereby reducing housing deficit in the country. Design/methodology/approach The risk inherent in construction projects had been established through literature in general. The risk in PPP projects is emerging because of the recent acceptance of the procurement option by governments all over the globe. The Nigerian Government has also adopted the procurement option in bridging the housing deficit in the country. This study, therefore, conducts a Delphi survey on the probability of risk occurrence peculiar to PPP mass housing projects (MHPs) in Nigeria. Pragmatic research approach through the mixed method of both quantitative and qualitative methods was adopted for this study. The quantitative method adopts the administration of questionnaires through the Delphi survey, whereas the qualitative method used interviews with the respondents. A two-stage Delphi questionnaire was administered to construction practitioners that cut across academics, the public and the private sectors by adopting convenient sampling techniques and following the Delphi principles and procedures. A total of 63 risk factors were submitted to the expert to rank on a Likert scale of 7 and any risk factors that the mean item score (MIS) falls below the grading scale of the five-point benchmark is deemed not necessary a risk factor associated with PPP MHPs and thereby expunged from the second round of the Delphi Survey. The interview was subsequently applied to the respondents to substantiate the risk factors that are peculiar to PPP-procured mass housing in the study area. Findings The findings show that risk factors such as maintenance frequent than expected, life of facility shorter than anticipated and maintenance cost higher than expected fall below 5.0 benchmark with MIS of 4.64 and 4.55 indicating that the risk factors are not peculiar to PPP mass housing in Nigeria. Research limitations/implications The implication for practise of this research is that these risk factors provide the PPP stakeholders with the comprehensive checklists that can aid in developing PPP risk assessment guidelines in the sector though both partners should be aware of the dynamic nature of risk because new ones might be emerging. Originality/value The authors hereby declare that the research findings are a product of a thorough research conducted in the study area and have not to be submitted or published by another person or publisher and due acknowledgement was made where necessary.


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Olubimbola Oladimeji

Purpose This paper aims to assess COVID-19 (C-19) pandemic influence in the 37 factors identified from extant literature as factors influencing the viability of local construction firms (LCFs). Design/methodology/approach A sample size of 65 staff of 31 LCFs that were awarded construction projects contracts in institutions in Nigeria was purposefully selected and accessed based on relevant predetermined criteria. Respondents’ views on factors determining the viability of LCFs were obtained. Factors known to be influenced by C-19 are 25 of the 37 factors rated on a five-point Likert scale of importance by the respondents. Mean scores were used to rank the factors and principal component analysis was used to obtain key component factors (CFs) influenced by the C-19 pandemic. Findings Six of the first ten “extremely important” and “very important” factors are known to be influenced by C-19 pandemic. A total of 8 CFs having 20 variables with factor loadings of more than 0.5 each were known to be influenced by C-19. The C-19 pandemic influenced LCFs’ cash flow and management of construction labour, plant and equipment amidst variables that had above 0.8 factor loading. Research limitations/implications A limitation of this study is the inability to conduct close contact interview during this period to obtain personal views on the influence of C-19 on LCFs. However, this does not reduce the quality of findings of this study, as there are valid literature basis hinging this study findings. Practical implications The paper recommends that all stakeholders pay prompt attention to the factors adversely affected by the C-19 pandemic to improve or at the least sustain the viability of LCFs. Originality/value This paper fulfils a present pertinent need of assessing the influence of the C-19 pandemic on various factors influencing the viability of construction firms.


2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 350-387 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soroush Maghsoudi ◽  
Colin Duffield ◽  
David Wilson

Purpose This paper aims to develop a practical tool to evaluate the outcomes of innovative practices in the building and construction industry. Design/methodology/approach A practical tool was proposed. It is an online tool programmed in a JavaScript environment. A previously developed and tested framework was the basis for this tool. Six case projects were used to test and validate the reliability of the tool. The outcomes of the building projects were categorized into six categories of economic, quality, social, environmental, satisfaction and soft and organizational impacts. Findings The most important finding of this research was that the evaluation of innovation in building and construction would be possible only if the subjective assessment is tolerated to include the non-monetary outcomes in the evaluation, as well as the monetary outcomes. Research limitations/implications The findings of this research are limited to the domestic and medium density building projects; thus, the outcomes might be generalized with appropriate care. The developed tool would assist practitioners in the field of building and construction to realize the impacts of innovation introduced into their projects. The project owners and developers could be the main audience of this tool. Practical implications The main contribution of the current study into the literature is the consideration of tangible and intangible outcomes of innovation together. In other words, this tool not only evaluates monetary outcomes but also takes into account non-monetary outcomes. It has been stated in the literature that 80 per cent of firms choose “non-numeric” project selection models (Meredith and Mantel, 2006). To provide a full representation of the reality, this model considers both numeric and non-numeric measures by applying both quantitative and qualitative evaluation methods. The project owners and developers could be the main audience of this tool. It is worth mentioning that this tool is the first attempt of its kind for building and construction projects, and it is applicable and fully practical. Originality/value This tool is the first attempt of its kind to evaluate practically the outcomes of innovation in the building and construction industry. The tool practicality and applicability in the real-world project is a privilege which gives more reliability and credibility to the proposed approach of innovation evaluation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-114
Author(s):  
Matthew Osivue Ikuabe ◽  
Ayodeji Emmanuel Oke

Purpose Construction contractors serve as economic partners to owners of construction projects, but often times, they could depict opportunistic tendencies which are to the detriment of the client. This study aims to focus on the awareness of construction professionals with respect to influencing factors of construction contractors’ opportunism. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire survey was adopted in eliciting responses from construction professionals, namely, architects, quantity surveyors, builders and engineers. In total, 337 questionnaires were distributed, of which 264 were retrieved and deemed fit for analysis. Methods of data analysis used are mean item score, factor analysis, analysis of variance, Kruskal–Wallis and Student Newman Kaul post hoc test. Findings The study revealed that the level of construction professionals’ awareness of contractors’ susceptibility of opportunism is very high. Equally, the most ranked factor is “No sanction for not reporting inconsistency of drawings.” The postulated hypothesis was subjected to a test, and the result showed that there is a significant difference in professionals’ perceived level of awareness of factors responsible for contractors’ opportunistic behaviors. Originality/value The study brings to the fore professionals’ knowledge of the awareness of influencing factors to contractors’ opportunism. The established level of its awareness portends a dangerous trend and has a large negative impact on the construction industry as this opens a vista to discouraging prospective investors, developers and owners, taking into cognizance the effect this would have on the economy.


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