Karimi, H (2017) Quantitative analysis of the impact of craft labor availability on construction project performance. PhD thesis, University of Kentucky, USA.
Abstract
A shortage of skilled craft labor in the North American construction industry has been an unfortunate cyclic trend since the late 1980s. This shortage has been reported and discussed frequently by numerous past studies in the context of construction industry. The 2008 U.S. recession was at least one period when the craft shortage temporarily improved, as witnessed by spikes in construction unemployment rates above 20% due to the work slowdowns. However, the current economic recovery period is once again experiencing craft shortages in some sectors of the U.S. construction industry. Although the past literature provides wealth of information about influence of craft labor shortage on construction project, less attention has been given to quantifying the impact of craft labor availability on construction project performance. The primary contribution of this study to the body of knowledge is to fill the gap in existing literature by quantitatively modelling and elucidating the influence of craft labor availability on construction project performance as measured by safety, schedule, productivity and cost. Data from 97 construction projects completed in the U.S. and Canada between 2001 and 2014 were collected from two data sources. A number of t-tests and regression analyses were conducted in both databases to examine the significance of the influence of craft labor shortage on construction project performance. The primary analysis shows that projects that experienced craft shortages underwent significant higher growth in cost overrun, time overrun, safety incident and also lower productivity compared to projects that did not. Further analysis on two databases returned the following models: 1) a Poisson regression model that demonstrates a positive exponential relationship between increased craft worker recruiting difficulty and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Total Number of Recordable Incident Cases per 200,000 Actual Direct Work Hours (TRIR) on construction projects. 2) a statistically significant correlation between increased craft recruiting difficulty and lower project productivity and higher schedule overruns 3) a multiple regression models that demonstrate a relationship between increased construction cost overrun with two variables of increased actual cost and increased craft staffing difficulty. These models are intended to be used by project management team to perceive the risk that skilled craft labor variability poses on project safety, productivity, time, and cost performance. In addition, understanding the level of impact that craft shortages are having through robust statistical analyses is a first step in developing the motivation for industry leaders, communities, and construction stakeholders to address this challenge.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Taylor, T R B |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | cost overrun; motivation; time overrun; construction cost; construction project; productivity; recession; safety; stakeholder; Canada; multiple regression; project performance |
| Index terms: | overrun, cost performance, modelling, shortages, productivity, cost overrun, construction project, quantitative analysis, multiple regression model, body of knowledge, Canada, construction cost, regression analysis, project management team, variability, regression model, economic recovery, project performance, statistical analysis, motivation, multiple-regression, unemployment, recession, actual cost, occupational safety and health, labour shortage, schedule overrun, time overrun, construction industry, database |
| Subjects: | data science, data analysis and analytics, management, psychology, statistical analysis, knowledge management, economics, data management, production management, occupational health and safety management, project controls, Geography, profession, analytical methods, project management theory and practice, financial and cost management, industry analysis, economic analysis |
| Topics: | Project Management, Roles and Professions, Digital Applications, Health and Safety, Engineering Principles, Business Strategy, Information Management, Research Practice, Geographical Context, Supply Chain Management, Cost Management, Human Resources, Time Control |
| 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