Stanisław Belniak, Agnieszka Leśniak, Edyta Plebankiewicz and Krzysztof Zima
The choice of a particular architectural solution when designing a building considerably influences the costs of its construction. The aim of this paper is to present the indexes…
Abstract
Purpose
The choice of a particular architectural solution when designing a building considerably influences the costs of its construction. The aim of this paper is to present the indexes which may relate to the complexity of the building shape, and which were then specified and compared on a particular example.
Design/methodology/approach
The article analyses various indices of building shape evaluation, their influence on the changes in construction costs and their sensitivity to the changes in the dimensions of the building. The methodology adopted in this article concerns the analysis of the selected simple factors assessing the shape of the building against the cost‐effectiveness of constructing the basic elements of the building.
Findings
The authors established the best building shape in relation to the costs of constructing the walls and foundations (square), and to the layout of the inside of the building (rectangle). They believe that the best evaluations of building shape were achieved by the LBI index, which evaluated the shape correctly in all of the analysed examples and which is the most sensitive to the changes in building parameters in correct proportions to the changes in construction costs.
Originality/value
The article presents the indexes which may relate to the complexity of the building shape. The authors established the best building shape in relation to the costs of constructing. The authors provide the degree of the floor area usability in buildings of various shapes.
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Keywords
Victor Karikari Acheamfour, Ernest Kissi and Theophilus Adjei-Kumi
The selection of a suitable contractor for a project has a significant impact on project success. In order to avoid the selection of an incapable contractor, the capabilities of…
Abstract
Purpose
The selection of a suitable contractor for a project has a significant impact on project success. In order to avoid the selection of an incapable contractor, the capabilities of contractors must be assessed prior to tendering through pre-qualification. However, the pre-qualification process is characterized by partiality and ambiguity. In view of this, numerous models have been developed to solve the pre-qualification problems. Prior to the development of such models, it is very important to assess how the pre-qualification criteria impact project success criteria so as to aid in the selection of pre-qualification criteria while considering the project and client’s objectives. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to ascertain the relationship between contractors’ pre-qualification criteria and project success criteria.
Design/methodology/approach
The study utilized explanatory research design in testing 35 hypotheses. The views of 121 practising quantity surveyors were solicited using a structured questionnaire and analyzed using the partial least square structural equation modeling to validate the hypothesis.
Findings
In all, 13 of the 35 hypotheses were not supported. The findings indicated a clear relationship between contractors’ pre-qualification and project success.
Practical implications
Therefore, it is evident that the practice of lowest evaluate bidder is not adequate for providing a satisfactory project outcome. It is, therefore, suggested that more emphasis should be placed on contractor’s technical abilities, health and safety and management capabilities as they have proven to have a significant correlation with the project success.
Originality/value
This study provides insights to the how various pre-qualification criteria can impact the project success criteria and further contributes to the symbiotic that exist in the literature on pre-qualification and project success.
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Emad Mohamed, Parinaz Jafari and Ahmed Hammad
The bid/no-bid decision is critical to the success of construction contractors. The factors affecting the bid/no-bid decision are either qualitative or quantitative. Previous…
Abstract
Purpose
The bid/no-bid decision is critical to the success of construction contractors. The factors affecting the bid/no-bid decision are either qualitative or quantitative. Previous studies on modeling the bidding decision have not extensively focused on distinguishing qualitative and quantitative factors. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to improve the bidding decision in construction projects by developing tools that consider both qualitative and quantitative factors affecting the bidding decision.
Design/methodology/approach
This study proposes a mixed qualitative-quantitative approach to deal with both qualitative and quantitative factors. The mixed qualitative-quantitative approach is developed by combining a rule-based expert system and fuzzy-based expert system. The rule-based expert system is used to evaluate the project based on qualitative factors and the fuzzy expert system is used to evaluate the project based on the quantitative factors in order to reach the comprehensive bid/no-bid decision.
Findings
Three real bidding projects are used to investigate the applicability and functionality of the proposed mixed approach and are tested with experts of a construction company in Alberta, Canada. The results demonstrate that the mixed approach provides a more reliable, accurate and practical tool that can assist decision-makers involved in the bid/no-bid decision.
Originality/value
This study contributes theoretically to the body of knowledge by (1) proposing a novel approach capable of modeling all types of factors (either qualitative or quantitative) affecting the bidding decision, and (2) providing means to acquire, store and reuse expert knowledge. Practical contribution of this paper is to provide decision-makers with a comprehensive model that mimics the decision-making process and stores experts' knowledge in the form of rules. Therefore, the model reduces the administrative burden on the decision-makers, saves time and effort and reduces bias and human errors during the bidding process.