Emmanuel Akampurira and Abimbola Windapo
The poor quality of design documentation has been identified as a significant contributor to delays, rework and cost overruns on construction projects in South Africa. Despite…
Abstract
Purpose
The poor quality of design documentation has been identified as a significant contributor to delays, rework and cost overruns on construction projects in South Africa. Despite this, limited research has been undertaken to specifically investigate the quality of design documentation. This in turn hampers efforts aimed at improving the quality of the design documents. The aim of this study is to identify the key quality attributes of design documentation and determine the extent to which the design documents issued on South African construction projects are perceived to incorporate the quality attributes.
Design/methodology/approach
A survey questionnaire was distributed among civil engineering design consultants and contractors in the South African construction industry. Responses to a total of 120 completed questionnaires were statistically analysed. The relative importance and extent of incorporation of the quality attributes was determined based on the mean scores.
Findings
It emerged from the study that the two key quality attributes of design documentation were legibility and coordinated design documentation. Attributes with the least importance were relevancy and certainty. Regarding the incorporation of the quality attributes, the design documents were rated highly with respect to their legibility and clarity. The quality of the documentation was deemed inadequate in terms of accuracy and certainty.
Practical implications
The findings provide valuable insight to stakeholders involved in developing initiatives aimed at improving the quality of design documentation and as a result construction project performance.
Originality/value
The study provides empirical evidence and extends the literature on design documentation quality especially from the perspective of South Africa, a developing country.
Details
Keywords
Many developing environments are characterised by uncertainties and research on how these uncertainties impact development in different industries is on-going. However, there is…
Abstract
Purpose
Many developing environments are characterised by uncertainties and research on how these uncertainties impact development in different industries is on-going. However, there is hardly any empirical examination of how this phenomenon impacts innovation adoption in the publishing industry, notwithstanding that the education industry largely depends on publishing. This study aims to interrogate this phenomenon with a view to describing clearly the factors that influence e-publishing innovation adoption in environments of uncertainty.
Design/methodology/approach
E-publishing data were collected from 79 websites whereas 109 firms filled out a questionnaire both online and offline. Four interviews were conducted and data were analysed using the SPSS to compute frequencies, percentages and correlates of digital publishing innovation adoption.
Findings
Book piracy and curriculum uncertainty were found to play greater influential roles in the adoption of e-publishing; and though they both correlated positively with e-publishing adoption, only book piracy has a significant predictive value in the adoption of e-publishing.
Originality/value
The results of this study shed light on the predictors of digital publishing adoption and should help interested publishers and scholars in environments of uncertainty to understand why efforts should be intensified to pursue copyright protection and enforcement.
Details
Keywords
Solomon Olusola Babatunde, Akintayo Opawole and Olusegun Emmanuel Akinsiku
Federal and State Governments began to explore more subtle alternatives for accessing private sector resources in the delivery and operation of public facilities. The purpose of…
Abstract
Purpose
Federal and State Governments began to explore more subtle alternatives for accessing private sector resources in the delivery and operation of public facilities. The purpose of this paper is to examine the types of infrastructural projects most suitable using public‐private partnership (PPP) for executions and identify the critical success factors in PPP on infrastructural projects with a view to strengthening the partnership between the public (government) and private sector. The overall goal is to enhance infrastructural projects delivery in Nigeria.
Design/methodology/approach
The primary data consists of survey questionnaires, drawn based on the identified factors on existing literature on critical success factors (CSFs). The structured questionnaires were administered on participants that were involved in the execution of PPP projects, either during the initial stage, construction stage or maintenance and operating stages in Lagos State.
Findings
The results of the mean score ranking indicate that transportation, which include roads, rails and airports construction ranked highest followed by provision of electricity and water. Real estate and educational construction projects ranked lowest in terms of suitability of execution using PPPs. However, the result of the one‐way analysis of variance (ANOVA) indicates that, there was no significant difference in the suitability of PPP for execution of the types of infrastructural projects delivery. The paper further identified nine CSFs in public‐private partnerships as follows: competitive procurement process, thorough and realistic assessment of the cost and benefits, favorable framework, appropriate risk allocation and risk sharing, government involvement by providing a guarantee, political support, stable macroeconomic condition, sound economic policy and availability of suitable financial market. The study, however, showed that well organized and committed public agency; social support; project technical feasibility and multi‐benefits objectives are the CFSs that are most important to the private investors. On the other hand, factors such as transparency in the procurement process; shared authority between public and private sector; thorough and realistic assessment of the cost and benefits; commitment and responsibility of public and private sector and strong and good private consortium are the CSFs that are most important to the public clients.
Originality/value
The results indicated that there was no significant difference in the suitability of PPP for execution of infrastructural projects delivery. This shows that PPP is suitable for all types of infrastructural projects. What needs to be done is to ensure that all the success factors responsible for successful implementations of PPPs are well structured in a way that its optimum performance can be guaranteed. Also, in identification of the critical factors in PPP it would help to develop a body of PPP knowledge. This knowledge would help in the establishment of relevant laws, regulations and guidelines and in the development of efficient frameworks for best PPP practices.
Details
Keywords
Khaldoon Shehab Al-Tameemi, Sundus Khaleel Alfaiz and Nidhal Al-Sadoon
It is a worldwide phenomenon that infrastructure development is considered a catalyst for a country’s economic growth, enhanced service delivery and improved quality of life. Iraq…
Abstract
Purpose
It is a worldwide phenomenon that infrastructure development is considered a catalyst for a country’s economic growth, enhanced service delivery and improved quality of life. Iraq has a considerable lack of necessary infrastructure. Many developing and developed nations utilise public-private partnerships (PPPs) as a means to address their infrastructure investment requirements. This study, however, uniquely investigates the specific factors hindering the implementation of PPP in Iraq, focusing on Iraq’s distinct political, economic and legislative challenges.
Design/methodology/approach
A thorough literature review, guided by systematic principles similar to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), has been conducted to understand PPP and highlight the factors that can facilitate the effective implementation of PPP around the globe. Afterwards, a questionnaire survey was deployed to relevant stakeholders in Iraq to examine these factors in the specific context of Iraq. Subsequently, in-depth interviews with key Iraqi decision-makers were carried out to discuss the questionnaire results in more detail and pinpoint particular barriers impeding successful PPP implementation in Iraq. These data were then rigorously analysed to highlight Iraq’s unique challenges, and the results were discussed to provide a contextual understanding. Based on these insights, conclusions and recommendations are drawn accordingly.
Findings
The results revealed that one of the main factors hindering the implementation of PPP in Iraq is the absence of a legal and regulatory framework that can give PPP implementation its legitimacy in Iraq. Other factors include the overall reluctance of several Iraqi legislators towards the PPP system and the unavailability of an environment attractive to investors.
Originality/value
The findings and recommendations set forth in this research can aid champions of the PPP system within the government of Iraq in devising an effective plan. Unlike similar studies, this paper addresses barriers specific to Iraq, such as political reluctance and regulatory gaps, providing new insights to guide policy. This plan is intended to foster a PPP mindset among relevant lawmakers, ensuring the successful approval of PPP laws and regulatory frameworks.