Causes of Delays in Iranian Building Construction Projects

Document Type : Research Article

Authors

1 Graduate School of Management and Economics, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.

2 Department of Civil Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Shahed University; Tehran, Iran.

3 Department of Civil Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

Building construction consumes a large percentage of the materials and energy of a country and plays a significant role in the sustainable development of a region. Therefore, any factor affecting construction can have a significant impact on that country. One issue faced by the construction industry as a whole is delayed completion of projects. Poor management practices, such as time management, are pervasive factors. This study investigated and evaluated the causes for delays in the completion of construction projects in order of significance. As applied research, this study examined the causes of delays in building projects in Iran. Library resources were used to extract a set of causes from the literature and these were used to form the items of a questionnaire. The significance of each item was evaluated based on severity and frequency indices. It was then distributed through social media among a society of engineers active in the field of building construction. A total of 216 responses were gathered and formed the basis of our analysis. The results indicated that late financing by the client, demands for kickbacks, non-standard procedures followed by officials, and unrealistic planning and time scheduling of projects were the main causes of delay. The results of this study are a wake-up call for development planners, policymakers, project managers, engineers, experts, clients, contractors, and consulting engineers. Sustainable development can only be achieved by controlling these determinants of construction delays.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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AUT Journal of Civil Engineering
Volume 5, Issue 4
December 2021
Pages 613-624

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