A framework for understanding purchasing in building construction companies

Bildsten, L and Manley, K (2015) A framework for understanding purchasing in building construction companies. Construction Management and Economics, 33(11-12), pp. 865-879. ISSN 01446193

Abstract

Purchasing on the part of a building construction company involves actors inside and outside the organization. These actors are driven by different motives that influence purchasing decisions in different situations. An explicit framework that assists in understanding the different purchasing situations would be of benefit to companies and researchers. Through a study of purchasing theory and practices, including interviews with a number of building construction companies, a framework of purchasing is proposed. The framework covers all stages in the purchasing process and focuses on four factors: (1) purchasing situations; (2) level of complexity; (3) active roles and (4) supply chain involvement. The inter-relationships between these factors are discussed from the perspective of the companies.

Item Type: Article
Uncontrolled Keywords: actors; building construction; buying centre; purchasing; roles
Index terms: building construction, interview, complexity, purchasing, motive
Subjects: data collection methods, psychology, building construction, systems engineering, procurement strategy
Topics: Procurement, Construction Technology, Research Practice, Engineering Principles, Human Resources
Descriptive scope: 3 PCE

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