Lindhard, S and Wandahl, S (2014) Exploration of the reasons for delays in construction. International Journal of Construction Management, 14(1), pp. 36-44. ISSN 1562-3599
Abstract
Construction sites are dominated by chaos and complexity, enforcing challenging conditions for establishing reliable and robust schedules that are easy to observe. The consequence is a large amount of delayed activities that again results in an unreliable schedule. Last planner system (LPS) was introduced as a production planning and control system to increase the reliability of scheduling task. By focusing on the removal of constraints, the LPS has successfully decreased the number of delayed activities. To further decrease delays, this research investigates the causes for delays at three construction cases. In total, 5424 scheduled activities were followed, whereof 1450 were delayed. The delayed activities were, besides the unidentified ones, categorized into 11 different categories and a statistical test of means was performed. The research revealed six often-occurring causes to delay: connecting work, change in work plans, workforce, external conditions, material and construction design. Furthermore, the study revealed five seldom-occurring causes to delay: space, equipment, rework, unexpected conditions, and safety. The findings have been structured in accordance to the preconditions used in the LPS theory. Therefore, the results can directly be applied to the making-ready process and used as guidance of where to intervene in attempt to reduce future delay.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | last planner system; lean construction; preconditions; scheduling |
| Index terms: | exploration, construction site, lean construction, rework, statistical test, last planner system, complexity, control system, production planning, scheduling |
| Subjects: | project controls, operations research, monitoring and control, environmental resource management, work location, systems engineering, operations management, statistical analysis, building construction, project delivery |
| Topics: | Time Control, Engineering Principles, Project Management, Research Practice, Business Strategy, Sustainability, Site Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
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