scholarly journals The Effects of Pandemic on Construction Industry in the UK

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 48
Author(s):  
Abdussalam Shibani ◽  
Dyaa Hassan ◽  
Nehal Shakir
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Construction Sites ◽  
Commercial Development ◽  
Good Relationship ◽  
Social Distancing ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
The World ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Study Participants

Pandemics such as: Covid-19 virus have a major impact on the economy of the world and the construction industry has not been exempted. This research investigates the effects of pandemic on construction industry in the UK, and particularly, ways in which the UK construction industry stakeholders such as project managers, contractors, engineers and subcontractors have responded to these pandemics. The research involved a 30 study participants who comprised site engineers, project managers, construction teams, subcontractors and contractors. The findings reported construction companies both dealing with residential and commercial development were major affected by Covid-19 pandemic due to lockdown and social distancing in construction sites. The strategy that was applied by construction companies was maintaining a good relationship with their suppliers and the safety of construction teams. The findings of the research will offer construction companies in the UK insights on how to deal with such pandemics in future to become more resilient.

Greek Construction Project Managers' Cognitive Abilities, Personality and Knowledge

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 32-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georgios N. Aretoulis ◽  
Christoforos H. Triantafyllidis
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Cognitive Abilities ◽  
Well Being ◽  
International Management ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Project Manager ◽  
Special Importance ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Management Literature ◽  
Structured Questionnaire

The tasks performed by a project manager are of special importance to the well being and economic prosperity of construction companies. This paper is aiming at defining the Greek project managers' dominant cognitive abilities, personality characteristics, skills and knowledge. An effort is made to identify available attributes associated with successful management performance and career development. The survey was conducted based on a structured questionnaire. The effort led to 102 responses, originating from engineers and construction professionals, throughout the Greek Construction Industry, including Public-Work Authorities. The questionnaire was based on international management literature and interviews. The study discusses the results of the survey and provides a comparison with those attributes identified in the international literature and correlates the participants' profile with their responses.

Reducing waste to landfill in the UK: identifying impediments and critical solutions

2013 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lukumon O. Oyedele ◽  
Martin Regan ◽  
Jason von Meding ◽  
Ashraf Ahmed ◽  
Obas John Ebohon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Cost Savings ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Early Communication ◽  
Design Changes ◽  
Critical Solutions ◽  
The Uk

PurposeThe UK construction industry produces up to one third of all waste to landfill. This study aims to identify specific project practices impeding the reduction of waste in construction projects as well as uncovering potential waste solutions throughout the project delivery process. The rationale being that for such a drastic reduction in waste to landfill, holistic and extensive measures would be required.Design/methodology/approachA two‐way methodological approach was used. This comprised qualitative unstructured interviews and a quantitative questionnaire survey of three major stakeholders in the UK construction industry: clients, architects and contractors.FindingsDesign factors remain the major cause of impediments to waste reduction to landfill. Critical impediments include clients making waste prevention a top priority in projects, overly complex designs, waste taking a low priority compared to project time and costs, lack of concerns by designers for buildability, among others. Critical solutions include early supply chain involvement in design process, choosing materials for their durability, early communication of design changes to all parties, longer project programmes and better lead times, among others.Practical implicationsIn all, the target of halving construction waste to landfill based on the 2008 benchmark is achievable but would require construction companies to take it upon themselves to implement the proposed solutions suggested by this study.Originality/valueThe value of this research is to provide UK construction companies with solutions to reduce waste and aid the reaching of the landfill target, as landfill is decreasing as a solution to waste. In addition the cost savings on reducing waste could be crucial for companies in this current economic climate.

scholarly journals ACHIEVING SAFETY AND PRODUCTIVITY IN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS

2015 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-318 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rafiq Muhammad CHOUDHRY
Keyword(s):  
Statistical Analysis ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Practical Knowledge ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Hard Copy ◽  
Construction Sites

Improvement of safety and productivity are major concerns throughout the construction industry. There is a dearth of efforts that document the need for simultaneous achievement of safety and productivity on construction sites. The objective of this research is to investigate productivity and safety simultaneously on construction projects by con­ducting a survey. In total, 1,800 hard-copy questionnaires were distributed and the response rate was 81%, resulting in 1,454 valid questionnaires for analysis. Safety and productivity were investigated on 25 construction projects by means of statistical analysis. The results indicated that eleven of the fifteen significant findings pertained to safety and the rest to productivity. The results confirmed that it is possible to improve productivity and safety simultaneously on construc­tion projects. All measures were found to be correlated with both safety and productivity. The findings of this research provide practical knowledge to project managers and safety practitioners on construction projects to achieve safety and productivity simultaneously. The methodology of research might be useful for research at other construction projects in other regions and cultures.

scholarly journals Strategic framework for implementing smart devices in the construction industry

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (2) ◽  
pp. 218-243
Author(s):  
Manuel Alexander Silverio-Fernández ◽  
Suresh Renukappa ◽  
Subashini Suresh
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Smart Devices ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Framework ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
The Uk

Purpose The decentralisation of information and high rate of mobile content access in the construction industry provide an ideal scenario for improvement of processes via the implementation of the paradigm of the Internet of Things (IoT). Smart devices are considered as the objects interconnected in the IoT; therefore, they play a fundamental role in the digital transformation of the construction industry. Currently, there is a lack of guidelines regarding the implementation of smart devices for digitalisation in the construction industry. Consequently, this paper aims to provide a set of guidelines for implementing smart devices in the construction industry. Design/methodology/approach An empirical study was performed in the UK and the Dominican Republic (DR). Following a systematic approach, qualitative data collection and analysis was performed based on semi-structured interviews involving professionals from construction companies in the UK and the DR. Interviews were recorded and subsequently transcribed using Microsoft Word and exported to the software NVivo, where the software was used to find common thematic nodes across all interviews. Findings The findings encompass drivers, challenges and critical success factors (CSFs) for implementing smart devices in construction project. For both countries, the top five CSFs were leadership, staff training, culture, technology awareness and cost of implementation. These findings were used to develop a strategic framework for implementing smart devices in construction companies. The framework establishes the actors, elements and actions to be considered by construction companies when implementing smart devices. Originality/value This paper provides a richer insight into the understanding and awareness of implementing smart devices. A strategic framework for implementing smart devices in the construction industry and providing guidelines for adopting smart devices in construction projects was developed and validated. This study provides a better understanding of the key factors to be considered by construction companies when embedding smart devices into their projects.

scholarly journals An Investigation on the Adoption of Electronic Commerce Systems for the Operators of Construction Companies

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 9
Author(s):  
Nafisa Bello Issa ◽  
Angela Siew Hoong Lee
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Diffusion Of Innovation ◽  
Technological Factor ◽  
Construction Workers ◽  
Relative Advantage ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
The World ◽  
Innovation Model ◽  
Internal And External Factors

E-commerce is emerging and growing in all kinds of businesses and industries over the world especially in the construction industry. This research focuses on the adoption of business-to- business kind of e-commerce in construction industry. This research aims to identify the motivational and barrier factors of the construction workers in influencing the adoption of e- commerce specifically in the construction industry world. As part of the research, a multinational company, which produces tools for the construction industry, will be used as a case study to look into how the customers of this company are adopting e-commerce. This research uses the Diffusion of Innovation model as the based research framework to understand the factors that explain the rate of adoption and how these factors are influencing the adoption in the construction industry. Other internal and external factors of companies such as the organizational factor, technological factor digital readiness will also be looked into to understand their influence as well when it comes to adoption of e-commerce. Data collection is done by distributing questionnaires to the related participants in the construction industry. Findings from this study provides insights on the factors of adoption by applying the diffusion of innovation model and recommendation of strategies for this industry to address the problem of low adoption of e-commerce among construction workers in the construction industry. This research showed that relative advantage, compatibility, complexity, Trialability, organizational readiness and trust are significant factors leading to the adoption of e-commerce systems. Culture as well as technological and digital readiness were found to be insignificant. Overall, the study’s findings enrich the discourse related to the adoption of e-commerce systems by construction companies in Asia and other parts of the world. The findings will be relevant for construction companies around the world planning to introduce or improve the e-commerce adoption of the customers. The study’s findings could also be relevant for future analysis of e-commerce adoption.

Strategies for Engendering Health and Safety Culture in Construction Firms in Abuja, Nigeria

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jimoh R.A. ◽  
◽  
Oyewobi L.O. ◽  
Uthman N.L. ◽  
Ibrahim K. ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Safety Culture ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Construction Sites ◽  
Construction Firms ◽  
Varied Degree ◽  
Level Of Motivation ◽  
Construction Works ◽  
Civil Engineers

Many countries have put in place policies and legislation to reduce accidents and diseases on construction sites though having varied degree of comprehensiveness, the extent of implementation, will and capacity of enforcement. In spite of these efforts, it has been revealed that the increase in the rate of unsafe acts and rate of fatalities in the construction industry is significant due to poor safety culture. Hence, this study assessed the level of health and safety (H&S) culture in construction firms in Abuja by self-administering a total of 152 questionnaires on H&S issues to construction professionals. It included Builders, Quantity Surveyors, Architects, Civil Engineers, and Project Managers/supervisors who were involved in construction works. The data obtained were analysed using percentages and mean scores. It was discovered that despite the increasing growth in the construction firms in Nigeria, the H&S culture practice in construction firms is highly fragmented and poorly implemented. It is recommended among others that there should be high commitment from the top of organisations which will in turn produce higher level of motivation and commitment throughout the organisations.

Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution

2021 ◽  
pp. 470-491
Author(s):  
Edwin Glasgow QC ◽  
Marion Smith QC
Keyword(s):  
Dispute Resolution ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Alternative Dispute Resolution ◽  
Standard Form ◽  
Civil Procedure ◽  
England And Wales ◽  
Industry Standard ◽  
The World ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Resolution Processes

This chapter focuses on alternative dispute resolution (ADR), which is used as a collective description of various methods of resolving disputes other than through the formal adversarial processes of litigation or arbitration. It emphasizes how ADR is now recognized in construction industry standard form contracts that provide for dispute resolution processes. It also mentions courts in the UK and throughout the world that support and actively encourage ADR, specifically in England and Wales that includes ADR as part of the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR). This chapter considers the use of ADR to assist in resolving disputes in the construction industry. It concentrates on mediation but also looks at negotiation and early neutral evaluation.

scholarly journals A Study on Fire Safety on Residential and Commercial Construction Sites

2018 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-174
Author(s):  
C. Sivakumar ◽  
R. Malathy ◽  
P. Sivaprakash
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Fire Safety ◽  
Prolonged Exposure ◽  
Industrial Sector ◽  
Construction Sites ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Legal Standards ◽  
Global Standards ◽  
Under Construction ◽  
Safety Systems

AbstractThe construction industry in India is the country’s second largest industrial sector, after agriculture. The construction industry makes a remarkable contribution to the Indian economy and provides employment to a large number of people of India. Fire is a chemical reaction of a combustible substance with oxygen, involving heat and is usually accompanied by a visual flame or incandescence. Ensuring fire safety has always been a challenge to the stakeholders, i.e. building owners, construction companies, contractors and sub-contractors, and government employees due to the multiplicity of the factors involved and their complexity. There are various legal standards and requirements for ensuring fire safety on construction sites. The buildings are normally provided with firewalls during construction and these firewalls separate two structures or divide a structure into smaller portions to prevent the spread of fire. The lightweight construction and trusses are designed to support only their own weight. During a fire, if one fails, a domino effect happens and all fail rapidly within 5 to 10 minutes. Prolonged exposure to fire may result in structural collapse and injury or death of the occupants of the building under construction. Fire safety on construction sites is still in its primitive stages in India. There is a great necessity to improve fire safety on construction sites to protect construction workers and other occupants of the buildings. This study aims to design and implement fire safety systems for construction sites, thereby enhancing the standards to meet the system requirements at par with global standards.

Emotional intelligence and transformational leadership behaviours of construction project managers

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily M. Potter ◽  
Temitope Egbelakin ◽  
Robyn Phipps ◽  
Behrooz Balaei
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Intelligence ◽  
Transformational Leadership ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Leadership Style ◽  
Construction Project ◽  
Project Managers ◽  
Online Questionnaire ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Transformational Leadership Style ◽  
The Uk

Purpose Existing research has highlighted the need for influential leaders to respond to the evolving social, economic and environmental constraints on the construction industry. Studies on leadership in other sectors have shown that influential leaders tend to demonstrate a high level of emotional intelligence. Little or no research examining relationships between leadership style and emotional intelligence has been conducted specific to construction project managers. This study aims to identify the prevalent leadership style adopted by construction project managers and investigate potential correlations between leadership style and emotional intelligence. Design/methodology/approach An online questionnaire including a mix of open and closed questions was adopted to address the research objectives. The group studied comprised project managers currently working in the construction industry in New Zealand and the UK. Findings The research found that transformational leadership style is prevalent among project managers examined in this study. Significant positive relationships were found between project managers’ emotional intelligence and their likelihood of adopting a transformational leadership style. Originality/value The research results provide the construction industry with a benchmark against which individuals with high emotional intelligence, and so most suited to the challenges of the project management role, can be identified and trained. Recommendations including suitable methods for identifying, recruiting and training project managers, as well as secondment and mentoring options, were suggested for improving leadership capabilities in the construction industry.

scholarly journals Developing a Culture of Health and Safety on Construction Projects Framework in Nigeria

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (7) ◽  
pp. 1019-1022
Author(s):  
Fatemeh Nouban ◽  
Serah Onuh John
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Projects ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Security Framework ◽  
Construction Sites ◽  
Health Security ◽  
Safety Practices ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Government Construction ◽  
Construction Works

Managing health and safety on construction sites has always been a challenging issue faced by the Nigerian construction industry. Safety conditions on the construction sites depends on type or nature of work to be carried out and the management make commitment to implement safety projects concerning construction. There are no requirements assigned for implementing a security management system by the Nigerian government. Construction industries lacked a framework to implement security regarding projects on construction sites. Developing a Safety Framework can help professionals involved in carrying out construction works, implement and improve safety practices in executing their projects on sites. This study presents the development of a structure for implementing an effective health security on construction sites. An extensive review of the literature was carried out to design an appropriate security framework. The results underscore the requirement for competent personnel who must be appointed to ensure safety on construction sites. Finally, a security framework was developed in which companies can accept and adhere. The results of this research will help Nigerian construction companies to improve safety on construction sites.

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