Value management applications in China's construction industry

This paper introduces a research survey to identify the current state of value management (VM) applications and to set up a benchmark for its future development in China's construction industry. The survey extensively solicited the views of designers and contractors regarding VM applications in the industry. The findings reported in this paper reveal the awareness and knowledge degree of VM among construction professionals, applications of VM in the construction industry, approaches adopted in VM practices, the output produced by VM and the major factors impeding its further development. Based on the survey results and relative discussion, an overall picture of VM applications in China's construction industry is drawn. It is argued that VM is still in its initial stage and many tasks have to be addressed to exert its huge potential in the construction industry. Although this paper concentrates on VM applications in the context of China's construction industry, the findings should be relevant to many developing countries, as they face similar problems in terms of promoting the application of VM in construction.