Mante, J; Ndekugri, I; Ankrah, N and Hammond, F (2012) The influence of procurement methods on dispute resolution mechanism choice in construction. In: Smith, S D (ed.) Proceedings of 28th Annual ARCOM Conference, 3-5 September 2012, Edinburgh, UK.
Abstract
The success of major infrastructure projects is crucial to economic development. Clients' expectations that infrastructure projects will meet their objectives are however confronted by hackneyed construction and engineering challenges relating to cost overruns, delays, issues of quality and disputes. In dealing with major construction disputes, the focus has been on the promotion of the use of alternative resolution mechanisms. The discussions in the literature on the subject have, however, failed to align the procurement method with the parties' selection of dispute resolution mechanism in the event of disputes. The result of the failure has been cost in terms of resources and relationships. An understanding of the link between procurement methods and DRM will avoid situations where cooperating construction entities end up as adversaries mainly as a result of how disputes between them are resolved. This study reports on the preliminary phase of on-going research into the avoidance/ resolution of major infrastructure project disputes. Initial findings, based on a critical review of the literature and an analysis of DRM provisions in standard forms of contract, show that: (i) The standard contracts have virtually the same provisions on dispute resolution regardless of the procurement method: arbitration, adjudication/dispute board; (ii) while there is ample evidence of the impact of choice of procurement method on project success generally, the literature on the relationship between procurement methods and dispute reduction and resolution is fragmented and of limited direct relevance. What research exists on the subject is primarily confined to an examination of the relationship between procurement methods and dispute frequencies. There are, however, indications from the literature of strong connection between choice of procurement methods and DRM. The implications of the initial findings for the design of the rest of the on-going study are examined.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | construction; dispute resolution mechanisms; procurement methods; project success; collaborative procurement |
| Index terms: | infrastructure project, resolution, construction dispute, arbitration, evidence, cost overrun, dispute, standard form of contract, adjudication, procurement method, economic development, project success, promotion |
| Subjects: | conflict resolution, infrastructure and transport systems, management, economic development, project management theory and practice, financial and cost management, contractual arrangements, evaluation and assessment methods, dispute resolution |
| Topics: | Legal Issues, Human Resources, Cost Management, Engineering Principles, Project Management, Research Practice, Stakeholder Management, Sustainability, Procurement |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCA |
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