Abstract:
Consultants are the major role players in design of construction projects. It is well
acknowledged that the consultant and design linked issues are more or less integrated
and influence delay in a project. Therefore, the objectives of the investigation are to
identify the influential consultant and design related variables, which cause delay; to
evolve the causal feedback relations among the most influential consultant and design
linked variables and delay; and to develop a model to estimate the reduction of delay
under varied strategic interventions. For this purpose a survey was conducted among
120 stakeholders and professionals from various construction projects in India. By
using System Dynamics (SD) modelling principles, causal feedback relations among
the most influential parameters that influence delay were established and dynamic
hypotheses were evolved for developing policy interventions to reduce delay. A SD
model was developed by using data from medium sized building projects in India to
examine the behaviour of the project schedule and delay under different simulated
scenarios, and estimate the reduction of delay under different policy interventions
based on the dynamic hypotheses framed. Findings suggest that there exist definite
causal feedback relations among the consultant and design linked variables, such as late
reviewing and approving of design documents by consultant, delay in approving major
changes in the scope of work by consultant, delay in performing inspection and testing
by consultant, poor communication/coordination between consultant and other parties,
inflexibility (rigidity) of the consultant, delays in producing design documents,
complexity of project design, mistakes and discrepancies in design documents, and
unclear and inadequate details in drawings, which essentially cause delay. However,
the model results revealed that policy interventions based on (1) causal feedback
mechanisms involving appointment of highly competent consultant and design team,
delay in producing the design documents and delay in construction; and (2) provision
of effective communication mechanism, conflict resolution and delay in construction
can reduce delay significantly.
