Demetracopoulou, V; O'Brien, W J; Khwaja, N; Feghaly, J and El Asmar, M (2024) A critical review and analysis of decision-support processes and tools for project delivery method selection. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 31(1), pp. 487-505. ISSN 0969-9988
Abstract
Purpose: Over the last three decades, construction projects have increasingly been delivered through alternative delivery methods. As a result, many owners have a range of delivery methods to choose from and aim to use the right one for each of their projects. Researchers have developed several tools and decision-support processes to facilitate this selection procedure. The purpose of this study is to review and discuss differences and common themes across selection tools developed by academic researchers and project owners. Design/methodology/approach: The study reviews prominent selection processes and tools used for infrastructure projects by conducting an in-depth literature review and using the content analysis method to elicit findings on the methodologies and criteria presented in the literature. Findings: This study presents three principal findings. First, findings show three common themes emerge within the selection criteria—characteristics, goals and risks. Second, while academic studies most commonly suggest employing multi-attribute analysis, this study reveals that, in practice, selection tools most frequently employ a staged or gated evaluation based on the type of criteria and their importance to the decision. Finally, this review further highlights the importance of institutional context in decision-making. Originality/value: This work contributes to the body of knowledge by providing guidance to practitioners and opening new directions for researchers around the way selection criteria are categorized in the relevant literature and the institutional context considerations when structuring or evaluating a selection process or tool.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | alternative project delivery; criteria; decision-support processes; delivery method selection; methodologies; tools |
| Index terms: | infrastructure project, selection criteria, project delivery, delivery method, owner, multi-attribute analysis, construction project, methodology, decision-making, practitioner, body of knowledge, literature review, content analysis |
| Subjects: | project delivery, knowledge management, data analysis and analytics, practitioner, infrastructure and transport systems, sociology, decision analysis, delivery method, production management, tendering, research methods |
| Topics: | Roles and Professions, Stakeholder Management, Risk Management, Procurement, Engineering Principles, Information Management, Project Management, Research Practice |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here