ABSTRACT
Subcontractors have been found
to execute significant portion of construction works, hence their contribution
to the overall project cannot be under-estimated. A construction subcontractor
is that organisation that enters into a contract with a client or a general
contractor to execute some portions of work for the main contractor. The main
contractor and the consultant‘s ability to achieve a project within the
stipulated time and within cost, is contingent largely on the subcontractor‘s
performance. In most construction projects, the onus lies on the main
contractors to manage the project with respect to tasks including procurement
of material and equipment, contract administration, project financing and
progress monitoring. While subcontractor management has the opportunity to
produce quality results, it also has the potential to disrupt a project if
performed incorrectly. To overcome the challenges faced by Main Contractors in
managing subcontractors, this research aimed to develop guidelines for use by
main contractor in managing sub-contracts to help improve the performance of
projects in terms of time and cost. In order to achieve the aim stated above,
the study adopted a quantitative approach with the aid of structured survey
questionnaire as the key tool for data collection, with a response rate of 67%.
The data collected was processed using the statistical package for social science
(SPSS) and later conveyed into the Microsoft Excel 2010 for analysis using
descriptive statistical tools and measures namely tables; mean and standard
deviation and Relative Importance Index (RII). The findings revealed that
subcontracting is a common occurrence in building projects in Ghana and that
significant portions (as much as 40 percent) of projects/works are outsourced
to subcontractors. Again, the study identified topmost challenges of
subcontract management as Non-Adherence to schedule, Site coordination
challenges, Lack of proper communication, Lack of safety and Contractor's
financial challenges. Furthermore, the showed that the factors affecting the cost and time performance of subcontractors include: Extent
of subcontractor‘s commitment to schedule, Practical and technical ability of
Main Contractors, Project Manager‘s recognition of the other construction
activities related to subcontractors tasks, Efficiency of project staff, Clear
understanding of the contract conditions, requirements and project objectives
and Many project execution obstacles. Finally, study established that the cost
and time related factors most affected by subcontractor management are: Waste
rate of materials, Planned time for project construction, Time needed to implement
variation orders and Time required in rectifying defects. The study therefore
recommended that Project managers must not adopt ‗brick and mortar‘ approach to
subcontractor management; the management approach adopted must be tailored to
suit the job at hand. Main contractors should also pay attention to helping
build the technical capacity of subcontractors in relation to project planning,
scope management and project cost and time management.
CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND
Construction as an industry has
played and continues to play extremely dominant and salient part in the economy
of every nation. The pursuits of the industry are also vibrant towards the
attainment of the socio-economic growth such as the provision of shelter,
infrastructure and employment (Anaman and Amponsah, 2007). Thousands of
different construction projects are realize every year. Projects take various
forms and magnitudes, and range from relatively minor and simple to very huge
and multifarious ones.
Most construction projects involve
Consultants, Main Contractors (MC) and Subcontractors(SC) ranging from
Specialist sub-contractor, Trade sub-contractor and Labour-only sub-contractor.
Several studies have confirmed that the involvement of subcontractors in
executing a significant portion of construction work, cannot be under-estimated
(Abbasianjahromi et al., 2013; Hartmann, 2009; Arditi and Chotibhongs, 2005; Ng
et al., 2008a and 2008b; and Wang and Liu, 2005). On many building construction
projects, it is common for subcontractors to perform significant portions of
the works (Hinze and Tracey 1994). Many general contractors sublet some or all
of their work attributable to their lack of capacity to execute specialized
jobs in a project, such as electric, plumbing and insulation. As stated by
Arditi and Chotibhongs(2005), ―day-to-day economic facts have long-established
the efficiency of subcontracting practice in the economical usage of available
resources‖.
Many large engineering projects are
faced with late completion dates, budget overruns and technical difficulties
(Koppenjan et al., 2011). Among the reasons given for such project failures
include, increasing complexity of projects and the underestimation of this
project complexity (Chang and Ive, 2007; Williams, 2005). Many clients have
enjoyed good experiences with contractors,
but conversely, many have been subject to extended project durations and cost
overruns. Interestingly, research has shown that ninety percent (90%) of
construction projects have miscalculated project costs, and sixty percent (60%)
of projects culminate in time delays (Flyvbjerg et al., 2010). According to
Flyvbjerg (2005), the Sydney Opera House, for example, was completed ten years
late and cost 15 times more than it was originally projected. In most
construction projects, the onus lies on the main contractors to manage the
project with respect to tasks including procurement of material and equipment,
contract administration, project financing and progress monitoring (Benjaoran,
2009).
Kumaraswamy and Matthews (2000)
describe Subcontractors as those who have specialize in the undertaking of a
specific work, who may also play the role of representatives of the production
system of the contractor organisation in providing services in the areas of
materials supply, human resource, equipment hiring, tools and designs . A
construction subcontractor is that organisation that enters into a contract with
the prime contractor to execute portions of work for the main contractor. In
many instances, subcontractors who are hired to carry out specific tasks in
construction projects, play a vital role. Usually, the general contractor
undertakes the core tasks and engages various specialty subcontractors to
execute what is left. Benjaoran (2009) has observed that subcontracting is
prevalent in housing and building construction projects than is the case of
industrial and engineering projects. This can be attributed to the increasingly
complex and specialized nature of buildings and the need for the provision of
special services. Contemporary buildings embrace an extensive diversity of
facilities installations. Gargets such as those for heating, ventilation and air-conditioning,
electricity supply, elevators, fire detection and guards, water supply and
drainage, and the like have become orthodox types of facilities installations
in buildings. Furthermore, the use intelligence systems such
as those for optimizing performance, sensing and making diagnosis for faults
and adapt to changes in working situations. The use of subcontracting therefore
helps to maximize the advantage of specialization.
According to Albino and Garavelli
(1998), the performance of the main contractor is strongly linked to that of
the subcontractors. This concurs with the observation of Mbachu (2008) who
asserted that the main contractor and the consultant‘s ability to achieve a
project within the stipulated time, at the quality prescribed and within cost,
is contingent, to a large extent, on the subcontractor‘s performance.
Although it is certainly a benefit
for a company to spread work among experts, many problems do tend to arise when
combining the efforts of varying subcontractors. As project sizes amplify, the
number of hired subcontractors usually increases as well, leading to problems
in subcontractor management (Thomas and Flynn, 2011).
Most of the past studies on
subcontractors have focused on selection of subcontractor (Fagbende et al.,
2011), evaluating/monitoring subcontractor‘ performance (Chamara et al., 2015;
Yik, 2006; Al-Otaibi and Price, 2010) and Contractor-Subcontractor Relationship
(Okunlola, 2015; Obafemi and Roy, 2013). However, developing a subcontractor
selection model, monitoring subcontractor‘s performance or enhanced main
contractor-subcontractor relationship would not necessary translate into a
successful subcontract works.
This study therefore seeks to
develop guidelines for use by main contractor in managing sub-contracts to help
improve the time and cost performance of projects.
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===================================================================Item Type: Ghanaian Topic | Size: 141 pages | Chapters: 1-5
Format: MS Word | Delivery: Within 30Mins.
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