El-Hamrawy, S A-K; Abu El-Maaty, A E and Akal, A Y (2017) Proposed models to measure the quality of highway projects: Regression analysis vs statistical-fuzzy approach. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 24(6), pp. 988-1003. ISSN 0969-9988
Abstract
Purpose Quality measurement is the trigger for quality improvement. Indeed, what gets measured gets done. The real scope of quality improvement in construction projects is the difficulty and-maybe-lack of quality measurement methods. The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors influencing the quality performance of highway projects in Egypt. Furthermore, this paper also contributes to develop models to measure the quality level of these projects. Design/methodology/approach A literature review is conducted to compile a list of factors influencing the quality of highway projects. The resulting list of factors is subjected to a questionnaire survey which was sent to owners, consultants and contractors of highway projects in Egypt. Furthermore, linear regression analysis and statistical fuzzy approaches are adopted for modeling process. Findings The survey results show that availability of experienced staff in the owner’s and contractor’s teams during the project execution, asphalt quality and type used in the construction process, pavement is not designed according to the regional conditions, and contractor’s labors and equipment capability are among the most important factors influencing quality performance. Originality/value The main contribution of this study is to develop models to measure the quality of highway projects in Egypt. The first model is based on the linear regression analysis, while the second one is based on a statistical fuzzy approach which is a hybrid approach from the fuzzy logic and regression analysis. Validation of the models reveals that the linear regression and the statistical fuzzy models can accurately assess expected quality of any future highway projects at confidence levels 68.97 and 87.44 percent, respectively.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | Egypt; quality; regression analysis; questionnaire survey; statistical fuzzy model; highway projects |
| Index terms: | literature review, survey, construction project, methodology, construction process, questionnaire, validation, measurement method, fuzzy logic, statistical fuzzy model, owner, quality improvement, highway construction, quality performance, Egypt, modelling, regression analysis |
| Subjects: | professional development, production management, Geography, research methods, civil engineering, statistical analysis, building construction, sociology, measurement and scaling, data collection methods, analytical methods, project delivery, financial and cost management, data science, data analysis and analytics |
| Topics: | Quality Management, Digital Applications, Site Management, Geographical Context, Project Management, Research Practice, Information Management, Engineering Principles, Cost Management, Stakeholder 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