Saad, A M; Zulu, S L and Dulaimi, M (2024) “It's your fault!”, said a public client to modernity advocates: An exploration of UK public sector’s viewpoints on the modern methods of construction. Construction Innovation, 24(6), pp. 1483-1504. ISSN 1471-4175
Abstract
Purpose: The staggering demand for construction projects to meet a spectrum of public needs is projected to outstrip the industry’s supply capability. The modern methods of construction (MMC) offers wider control due to shifting key construction processes offsite. Public clients play a significant role due to their purchasing power; however, their uptake of MMC is low, despite the benefits. The purpose of this study is to reveal the reasoning behind such low adoption. The research gap, herewith, is our lack of understanding of the influence of public clients perceptions on their adoption’s indecision. Design/methodology/approach: This study used a qualitative approach to investigate the motives behind the public sector’s low MMC adoption. Semi-structured interviews with 14 of the United Kingdom’s public sector decision-makers, industry leaders and experts have been conducted. Perspectives were argued against the diffusion of innovation (DOI) theory. Findings: Overall, the innovation’s attributes informed the authors of the positive perceptions from the public sector, demonstrating that the low adoption of MMC is not linked to any embedded issues with the innovation itself rather being predominantly related to the dynamics between supply and demand. The former (supply), reflected a failure in communicating confidence, and the latter (demand), attained characteristics that are limiting wider uptake. Originality/value: To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to apply the DOI theory to reveal the relationship between UK public clients’ perceptions and their decision-making. Moreover, this paper addresses the scant attention to the use of theories to explain the flow of innovations in the construction context.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | diffusion of innovation; innovation; modern methods of construction; open manufacturing/offsite construction |
| Index terms: | construction project, methodology, decision-making, exploration, construction process, open manufacturing, interview, reasoning, United Kingdom, dynamics, diffusion of innovation, public client, modern methods of construction, supply and demand, public sector, purchasing, qualitative approach, motive |
| Subjects: | professional development, Geography, production management, research methods, manufacturing engineering, systems engineering, procurement strategy, administrative law, sociology, decision analysis, building construction, cognitive psychology, market analysis, data collection methods, environmental resource management, psychology |
| Topics: | Geographical Context, Project Management, Research Practice, Engineering Principles, Information Management, Stakeholder Management, Risk Management, Procurement, Construction Technology, Sustainability, Legal Issues, Human Resources, Site Management |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
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