Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Dept. of Civil Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad, Iraq
2 College of Engineering, Al-Nahrain University, Baghdad, Iraq
Abstract
Cost overrun in construction projects is a common phenomenon in Iraq. This might occur due to diversity of factors. This study aims to identify the factors influencing construction projects cost that are potentially controllable by main contractors. A field study through a questionnaire survey was directed to a sample of related Iraqi professional engineers from general contracting companies at both public and private sectors. Their opinions on the impact and frequency of each factor were investigated. The questionnaire offered (59) factors classified in (8) categories namely; legislations, financial and economic, design, contractual, site management, material, labor and equipment. The factors were ranked according to the highest Relative Importance Index (RII). The study revealed (10) major factors that are potentially controllable by main contractors namely; labor productivity, sub-contractors and suppliers performance, equipment productivity, site organization and distribution of equipment, experience and training of project managers, scheduling and control techniques, planning for materials supply, planning for equipment supply, materials delivery and planning for skilled labor recruitment. Recommendations to aid contractors and owners in early identification of these factors are also included in this study.
Keywords
[2] D. Van Der Westhuizen and E. P. Fitzgerald, “Defining and measuring project success,” European Conference on IS Management, Leadership and Governance, Reading, United Kingdom, 7-8 Jul 2005.
[3] Z. S. M. Khaled, Q. J. Frayyeh, and G. K. Aswed, “Forecasting the final cost of iraqi public school projects using regression analysis,” Engineering and Technology Journal, Vol. 33, Issue 2, pp. 477-486, 2015.
[4] H. M. Morsy, “Cost control techniques and factors leading to cost overruns in construction projects,” Diploma Thesis, Faculty of Engineering, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt, 2014.
[5] G. H. Ali, “Factors affecting the cost of building school buildings in Karbala,” Quarterly Refereed Journal for Natural and Engineering Science, Vol. 3, A, No. 5 and 6, pp. 63-86, 2016.
[6] T. Ramachandra and J. O. B. Rotimi, “Causes of payment problems in the new zealand construction industry,” Journal of Construction Economics and Building, Vol. 15, Issue 1, pp. 43-55, 2015.
[7] M. Gunduz, Y. Nielsen and M. Ozdemir, “Fuzzy assessment model to estimate the probability of delay in Turkish construction projects,” Journal of Management in Engineering, Vol. 31, Issue 4, pp. 1-14, 2011.
[9] A. H. Memon, I. A. Rahman, M. R. Abdullah and A. A. A. Azis, “Factors affecting construction cost in mara large construction project: perspective of project management consultant,” International Journal of Sustainable Construction Engineering and Technology, Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp. 30-35, 2010.
[10] H. Xiao and D. Proverbs, “An investigation into factors influencing const-ruction costs based on Japanese, UK and US contractor practice,” Construction Economics and Building, Vol. 2, Issue 2, pp. 27-35, 2012.
[11] D. Karoriya, and M. Pandey, “Efficient techniques of construction material management in construction projects,” International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), Vol. 05, Issue 03, pp.1136-1138, 2018.
[12] P. Thomas and P. Binu, “Design of material management model for construction industry,” International Research Journal of Engineering and Technology (IRJET), Vol. 05, Issue 05, pp.1737-1741, 2018.
[13] I. A. Abdul kadhim, “Assessment of payment problems in the Iraqi construction sector,” MSc thesis submitted to the Dept. of Civil Engineering, University of Technology, Baghdad, Iraq, 2017.
)
