Al-Nakeeb, A A R (2000) An assessment of the effectiveness of quality assurance systems in the construction industry. PhD thesis, University of South Wales, UK.
Abstract
More than two decades have passed since the introduction of Quality Assurance Systems in the form of BS 5750/ISO 9000 yet the effectiveness of these systems are still a matter of controversy and debate. Although the implementation of Quality Assurance Systems in the construction industry has been slow to emerge, most large construction organisations are currently implementing such systems. Much has been written about the advantages and disadvantages of Quality Assurance Systems but unfortunately without any direct reference to any hard data. Most of the reported advantages and disadvantages are based purely on perceptions and views of individuals involved. The British Standards Institution (BSI) acts as a collaborating establishment for this research. This is the first research that attempts to assess the effectiveness of Quality Assurance Systems, in the construction industry. Based on data collected from literature, construction companies and experts in the field of Quality Management, the research provides a better understanding of the objectivity of available data regarding the effectiveness of QA Systems and examines the possibility of fording reliable measures. This thesis shows that no construction company has managed to assess the effectiveness of its Quality Assurance Systems in an objective manner. Regarding measures of the effectiveness of QA Systems, most experts believed that such measures are very important because an organisation must justify the existence of such systems, which are considered as overheads. However, all experts declared 1 that they are not aware of any construction company that has managed to assess the effectiveness of its ISO 9000 in any reliable manner. This research is of a particular value to construction companies who are considering implementing an ISO 9000 as well as those companies that are already implementing such systems.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Hibberd, P; Gronow, S and Williams, T |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction companies; overheads; quality assurance; quality management; standard methods and procedures |
| Index terms: | ISO, construction industry, effectiveness, overheads, quality assurance, large construction organization, construction company, implementation, standard methods and procedure, quality management |
| Subjects: | standards development, industry analysis, economic analysis, financial analysis, performance measurement, contractual arrangements, performance management, quality assurance, organization |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Quality Management, Procurement, Cost Management, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCT |
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