Bologna, R and Del Nord, R (2000) Effects of the law reforming public works contracts on the Italian building process. Building Research & Information, 28(2), pp. 109-118. ISSN 0961-3218
Abstract
The Italian construction industry was rocked by the scandals regarding procurement by the public sector during the early 1990s. Although not confined to construction, the role of the state in construction demand meant that it was one of the most heavily implicated sectors. Known as 'tangentopoli', the scandals have prompted a major reform of public sector procurement in the Italian industry which, combined with changes required to conform with EU directives, is leading to a profound cultural change in the industry. This paper provides an authoritative review of the changes in the procurement codes and the roles and relationships within the construction industry. It shows how the project management of public sector programmes is being strengthened, and how the procurement of the design and construction processes is being separated to provide greater transparency in the process. Although it is too soon to tell what the actual impact of these changes will be upon construction industry practice, some suggestions are made in the concluding comments.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | architects; construction business system; contracting system; contractors; corruption; cultural change; institutional change; Italian construction; Italy; project management; public sector procurement |
| Index terms: | public work, construction demand, Italy, corruption, architect, design and construction, building process, cultural change, construction industry, project management, transparency, construction industry practice, institutional change, public sector procurement, public sector, programme |
| Subjects: | administrative law, professional ethics, industry analysis, project controls, market analysis, building construction, sociology, Geography, professional development, project management theory and practice, infrastructure engineering, management, contractual arrangements, profession |
| Topics: | Time Control, Site Management, Organizational Design, Legal Issues, Roles and Professions, Procurement, Business Strategy, Research Practice, Project Management, Geographical Context, Engineering Principles, Information Management |
| 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