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Rework is known to contribute to waste and value losses in building design and construction. Studies estimate its magnitude between 2 and 25 per cent of construction contract sums. Rework‐related waste could, however, be higher if the whole life cycle of building facilities is considered. Rework occurrences are increasing in Uganda and yet the National Development Plan 2010/11 – 14/15 intends to construct additional public buildings. With insufficient information regarding rework causality and magnitude, wastage arising from rework during the implementation of the National Development Plan could be substantial. The problem of rework occurrence in Uganda will require determining rework causality and magnitude. This paper seeks to address these issues.

An exploratory study on rework in public building construction was undertaken through a case study to understand its causality and the timeframe over which it occurs. This preliminary research is characteristically qualitative with the aim of investigating rework causality in public building construction in Uganda. The case study was based on a project that rehabilitated and constructed new buildings in 15 nursing schools across Uganda. Semi‐structured interviews, contract documentation and archival records were used as sources of information on rework causality. Selective coding and subsequent categorisation of rework data was undertaken to support analysis of rework causality.

The findings supplement limited previous research that shows rework as a phenomenon existing into the operation and maintenance stage of building facilities. Rework‐related costs during this stage for the case study, referred to as operation‐related rework costs, were on average 0.25 per cent of construction contract sums. Significant causes of rework were ineffective stakeholder management, insufficient works supervision and use of non‐compliant building materials.

The paper highlights the need for improved design management, effective stakeholder management and a whole life value philosophy in order to reduce rework in public building construction.

The purpose of this paper was to assess the magnitude of the impact of construction-related rework on selected project budgets and schedule in public building construction in Uganda. The magnitude of construction-related rework was the mean determined over construction contracts under a selected project and expressed as a percentage of the construction contract sum.

A single case multi-unit study approach was adopted. A case study protocol was prepared that included a checklist, observation schedules and an interview guide. The three instruments were used to collect data from building contractors and end-users (the teaching staff and medical assistants). Representatives of the client entity and the end-users provided sufficient project documentation and related supplementary information for the study.

Construction-related rework was predominantly attributable to design information omissions, unacceptable workmanship and inadequate supervision of the contractor. Lightning conductor, electrical and roofing installations were the building elements that had the highest frequency of rework. It was further determined that the mean percentage of rework related impact on project budget and schedule was approximately 4.53 and 8.42 per cent, respectively.

The findings inform policy makers about likely areas that contribute to significant wastage and value loss in quality management of public sector projects. The research advocates for improved data collection protocols, integration of adequate design management and a whole life value philosophy during the public building construction process.

Claims are increasingly becoming a norm in construction projects and thus an area that is attracting interventions through researches. This paper aims to establish causes–effects relationship of claims in construction projects.

This is correlation study type of study that attempts to establish causes–effects relationship of claims in construction projects. Significant causes and effects of construction claims were determined using one-sample t-test. To establish the relationship, the significant causes and effects of construction claims were correlated using bivariate correlation analysis.

Among the significant causes, variations, change of scope of the project and delay in completion of works have high level of significant positive relationship with five to six other causes and positive relationship with multiple effects ranging from five to six. Besides, among significant effects, delay in completion and delivering of construction projects, poor contractual relationship among parties and extension of time have significant positive relationship with multiple causes.

The findings of this study are limited to causes-causes relationship and causes–effects relationship of claims in construction projects. This means effects–effects relationship was not covered that could be an important area to investigate as some of causes and effects are at times termed interchangeably.

With reference to previous studies which have focused on determining the causes and effects of construction claims, the findings of the current study have specific contribution on claims management as it divulges the causes of constructions claims that have multiplier effects to the project as a result of their linkage.

The paper unveils causes of claims with multiplier effects to construction projects for project participants to devise strategies to minimize and consequently eliminate them.

This research seeks to evaluate the impact of applying lean construction principles on the performance of reinforcement operations using a discrete-event simulation (DES) approach.

Process mapping of reinforcements operations was first established through field observation and interviews with construction managers involved in the selected project. Subsequently, quantitative data were gathered and then used to identify the best probabilistic density functions for each activity duration based on the fit-quality tests. Upon testing the validity of the real-world model, a lean simulation model was developed, using ARENA software, to investigate the impact of lean construction principles on the performance of such processes.

Lean principles are effective in enhancing the performance of the selected construction process. Output performance measurements for real-world model and lean model revealed that lean construction principles led to 41% improvement in process productivity, 14% enhancement in process efficiency and 17% reduction in cycle time.

The statistical findings only represent the process under study (reinforcement process) and cannot be generalized to other construction activities. In order to draw generalizable conclusions, future works are needed to extend this study to different project sizes and more complex construction processes (e.g. bricklaying process and concrete pouring operations). Moreover, there are other factors such as labor skills, rework and uncertainty, site conditions that require further analyses for leaner construction projects.

The methodology and the techniques presented in this work can be used for decision making by analyzing various lean construction scenarios and evaluating their impacts on performance outcomes of any construction process prior to real-world implementation.

While many procurement systems govern the construction sector, Design/Bid/Build is still prominent among the French building actors. The research applies Lean thinking (via a kaizen event) to the bidding phase of a building construction company to improve its bidding outputs.

The method used in this study is “Action-Research”. A two-month preparation phase was needed to prepare for the kaizen event. The results were based on an assessment conducted after 6 months of the kaizen event. Performance was measured following selected indicators related to ‘Time’, “Economical Impact”, “Quality” and “Sustainability”.

The Lean implementation had positive side-effects on the company’s organization and strategy as well.

The findings of this action-research project can be used to help researchers and practitioners assess the potential application of Lean in the bidding phase. It also provides insights into the importance of the cultural and existing practices for a successful Lean implementation.

A few research projects investigated the application of Lean thinking in bidding as it is considered as a wasteful process. However, waste can also be organized. The research proves that bidding can benefit from Lean thinking.

Through a systematic literature review covering 15 years, this paper aims to identify and annotate the barriers that hinder the career development of women working in the construction industry. Furthermore, it describes publication trends that have contributed to the evolution of the topic.

A systematic literature review of credible sources in different databases has been carried out for the period from 2000 to 2015. By means of thematic analysis, a data set of 60 articles has been analysed.

The topic has been and still is of interest to the research community. Women who work in the construction industry in different countries confront numerous career barriers, the more frequent being the difficulty of balancing work and family, and the lack of professionalism in human resource management.

Some publications related to the topic might have been inadvertently omitted. Hopefully, this paper can be valuable for informing future research directions.

The paper is useful to human resource managers to understand how their practices influence women’s career development, gender equity and organisational injustice, and how to improve them. It informs policies to reduce gender discrimination and guides researchers interested in gender diversity in the industry.

A clear vision of career barriers affecting women is required to find solutions and improve the fairness and justice of business practices.

Previous studies do not offer a comprehensive and up-to-date review covering such a wide time period and so many countries. It will have implications in the identification of initiatives critical to achieving lasting change in gender equity in the construction industry.