O’Brien, M J and Al-Soufi, A (1993) Electronic data interchange and the structure of the UK construction industry. Construction Management and Economics, 11(6), pp. 443-453. ISSN 01446193
Abstract
The UK construction industry is characterized by its fragmented nature. Information technology (IT) has had little effect on the industry, its work practices and structure. Electronic data interchange (EDI) is a standardized technology aimed at reducing the inefficiencies of trading. This paper analyses the possible impact of EDI on the structure of the industry. The main finding of this analysis is that EDI is a technology that has the capability of altering organizational interfaces to such an extent that it will change the structure of the UK construction industry.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | edi; fragmentation; industry structure |
| Index terms: | electronic data interchange, construction industry, fragmentation, information technology, work practice |
| Subjects: | management, data management, industry analysis, business, computing systems |
| Topics: | Research Practice, Digital Applications, Organizational Design |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCT |
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