This chapter gives an idea of what construction delays are, how are they defined and what are their types and comparison of them. Delays can be seen differently from different point of views. Causes of delays and categorization of them in various international contexts are also discussed.
A lot of work has been done before on construction delays and every author came up with his/her own definition.
“Assaf and Hejji defined delay as Time overrun either beyond completion date specified in a contract, or beyond the date that the parties agreed upon for delivery of a project slipping over its planned schedule.” (Assaf, Hejji, 2006)
Stumpf defined delay as “Act or event that extends the time required to perform a task under a contract. It usually shows up as additional days of work or as delayed start of an activity.” (Stumpf, 2000). And many similar definitions were given.
Therefore construction delays can be considered as time lag in completion of activities from a fixed time as per contract or they can be defined as late completion or late start of activities to the planned schedule or contract schedule. When project delay occurs it means project cannot be completed within stated time, which means there will be extensions of time required which will further result in fine, increased cost due to inflation, termination of contract, court cases etc. or combinations of above stated factors.
Delay can be seen as risk for the project and could be handled at inception stage or at least one can try to mitigate or minimize it. Risk is an integral part of a construction project; it is well known that no project is risk free. If risk is analysed at inception or planning stage it could be managed, minimized, shared, mitigated or accepted to give some good results. Delay can be considered similar to risk or a type of risk; as no construction project is free from delays, delay is also integrated part of construction projects. It depends on size of project as well. Therefore it is expected to analyse and manage delay in same fashion as risk.
Delays are often result of a mismanaged event which must have been managed in a systematic process so as to analyse the effect of that event on the project and how to minimize chances of further delay. (Keane, Caletka, 2008).
Before getting on types of various construction delays there is a major categorisation which is required to be understood. Construction delays can be delayed in some major groups as listed below.
El-Saadi (1998) categorized delay in four major groups.
Critical or Non critical
Excusable or Non Excusable
Compensable or Non Compensable
Concurrent or Non concurrent
Alkaas S., Mazerolle M. and Harris F. (1996) and Ahmed S.M. et al gave following categorizations:
Excusable Delays
Excusable compensable delays
Excusable noncompensable delays
Nonexcusable delays
Concurrent delays
To achieve objectives of this dissertation and to consider delay as risk it is necessary to know about these types of delays and as per categorization in what category they lie. This basic knowledge helps in moving forward and determining strategies to mitigate these risks. Now in this part we will discuss these types of delay in detail:
In simple words Critical delays are those which cause delay to entire project completion date while Non critical delays not necessarily affect the project completion date but affects progress. In all the projects delays are considered at the project completion date. Delays can be combination of small and big delays that occurred during the whole project. Therefore critical delays are taken more into consideration then noncritical delays.
Excusable Delays occurs due to events which are outside the control of contractor like heavy rains, storms, strikes, fire, client suggested changes, differing site conditions, change of government policy or their intervention, stakeholder intervention etc.
Alkass S. et al (1996) says that when there are excusable delays, contractor is entitled to time extension in case date of completion is extended. Such delays can also affect non critical activities which must be considered with more detailed analysis or adjustment of float time.
Excusable delays can be further classified in compensable and noncompensable delays.
As name suggests excusable compensable delays are those in which contractor is entitled for extra payment (compensation) i.e. monetary compensation and time extension as well. But decision that a delay is compensable or noncompensable is taken as per contract between client and contractor. Natural disasters or some reasons which are out of control are not considered. Example of such delay could be that client doesn’t allow access to site even after notice to proceed is given; other such delays which are due to client are compensable.
Such delays are such where both contractor and client are not responsible for delay. Under such circumstances only time extensions are granted and no monetary compensation is provided. Such delays include act of God.
As name suggests these delays are such that they don’t have any excuse or no excuse can be given for them. They arise due to carelessness or actions and inactions of contractors and subcontractors. For such delays no time extensions and monetary compensation is given to contractor if it has affected whole duration of project. In such cases client is liable to get liquidated damages. Example of such delay could be constructing something wrong which is not given in drawings, not completing work on time, improper resource allocation etc.
This is the most complex categorization of delay as it consists of two or more kind of delays regardless of their type which occurs at same time or overlaps some duration together. It is necessary to find out what type has caused overall delay in project completion. Therefore different factors like time of occurrence of delay, duration of delay, impact of them, float ownership etc. have to be considered carefully.
Alkass et al (1996) said that; Concurrent delays which contains two or more excusable delays results in time extension. When compensable and nonexcusable delays are concurrent a time extension can be given or delay can be distributed between client and contractor.
In section 2.3, categorisation of delays was discussed. Now in this section will deal with causes of delays. Lot of work has been done on understanding causes of delays. The two major categorization of delay causes one is Internal Cause another is External Cause.
Internal cause includes delays caused by parties involved in construction project like Client, Contractor, Designer, Consultant these are four major parties then Subcontractors, material suppliers etc. comes. From external factors it includes act of God, strikes, stakeholder’s dissatisfaction etc.
Assaf and Hejji (2006) reflected various causes of delays which occur in large construction projects. They had a field survey of 23 contractors, 19 consultants, and 15 owners and found out and reflected on 73 causes of delays under eight different groups. All those 73 factors are given in table below.
1
Original contract duration is too short.
Project
2
Legal disputes b/w various parties.
Project
3
Inadequate definition of substantial completion.
Project
4
In effective delay penalties.
Project
5
Type of construction contracts.
Project
6
Type of project bidding and award
Project
7
Delay in progress payment by owner.
Owner
8
Delay to furnish and deliver the site to contractor by the owner.
Owner
9
Change orders by owner during construction.
Owner
10
Late in revising and approving design documents by owner
Owner
11
Delay in approving shop drawings and sample materials
Owner
12
Poor communication and co-ordination by owner and other parties
Owner
13
Slowness is decision making process by owner
Owner
14
Conflicts between joint ownership of the project
Owner
15
Unavailability of incentives for contractors for finishing ahead of schedule
Owner
16
Suspension of work by owner
Owner
17
Difficulties in financing project by contractor.
Contractor
18
Conflicts in subcontractors schedule in execution of project
Contractor
19
Rework due to errors during construction.
Contractor
20
Poor site management and supervision by contractor
Contractor
21
Poor communication and co-ordination by contractor with other parties
Contractor
22
Ineffective planning and scheduling of project by contractor
Contractor
23
Improper construction methods implemented by contractor.
Contractor
24
Delays in subcontractors work
Contractor
25
Conflicts between contractor and other parties
Contractor
26
Inadequate contractors work.
Contractor
27
Frequent change of subcontractors due to their insufficient work.
Contractor
28
Poor qualification of the contractors technical staff
Contractor
29
Delay in site mobilization.
Contractor
30
Delay in performing inspection and testing by consultant
Consultant
31
Delay in approving major changes in the scope of work by consultant
Consultant
32
Inflexibility (rigidity) of consultant
Consultant
33
Poor communication and co-ordination by consultant with other parties
Consultant
34
Late in reviewing and approving design documents by consultants
Consultant
35
Conflicts between consultant and design engineer.
Consultant
36
Inadequate experience of dsigner.
Consultant
37
Mistakes and discrepancies in design documents
Design
38
Delays in producing design documents
Design
39
Unclear and inadequate details in drawings
Design
40
Complexity of project design
Design
41
Insufficient data collection and survey before design
Design
42
Misunderstanding of owner’s requirement by design engineer.
Design
43
Inadequate design team experience
Design
44
Un-use of advanced engineering design software.
Design
45
Shortage of construction materials in market
Material
46
Changes in material types and specification during construction
Material
47
Detail in material delivery.
Material
48
Damage of sorted material while they are needed urgently.
Material
49
Delay in manufacturing special building material
Material
50
Late procurement of materials
Material
51
Late in selection of finishing materials due to availability of many types in market
Material
52
Equipment breakdowns
Equipment
53
Shortage of equipment
Equipment
54
Low level of equipment-operator’s skill
Equipment
55
Low productivity and efficiency of equipment
Equipment
56
Lack of high technology mechanical equipment
Equipment
57
Shortage of labours
Labours
58
Unqualified workforce
Labours
59
Nationality of labours
Labours
60
Low productivity level of labours
Labours
61
Personal conflict among labours
Labours
62
Effects of subsurface conditions
External
63
Delay in obtaining permit from government
External
64
Hot weather effects on construction activities
External
65
Rain effect on construction activities
External
66
Unavailability of utilities in site
External
67
Effect of social and cultural factors
External
68
Traffic control and restriction at job site
External
69
Accident during construction
External
70
Differing site conditions
External
71
Changes in government regulations and laws
External
72
Delay in providing services from utilities
External
73
Delay in performing final inspection and certification by a third party
External
Table 2.1 Causes of delays as per group Assaf and Hejji (2006)
Their work gave a broad view over construction delays and their causes. Though their classification is quite broad, but it gives a more insight to various causes.
Odeh AM and Battaineh HT (2002) presented following 8 major groups of construction delay.
Client related factors which include finance, payment of billed work, interference in work, slow decision making etc.
Contractor related factors include site management, improper planning, insufficient experience, improper construction methods, insufficient and unskilled work force etc.
Consultant related factors include contract management, improper drawings, approval of drawings, tests at site etc.
Material related factors include availability, quality and shortage.
Labor and equipment factors include supply, productivity, equipment availability, failure etc.
Contract factors include changed orders and mistakes and disagreements in document.
Contractual relationship factors includes, disputes, negotiation, improper management of information system, improper work breakdown structure and task responsibility matrix.
External factors like act of god, strikes, accidents etc.
Most of the work done in field of causes of delays reflects similar causes of delays and 8 major groups. They all gave recommendations related to these factors but very few scholars suggested to forecast delay in planning stage. Khalil and Ghaftly (1999) said delay is important issue. In order to manage it more properly and to mitigate them deep investigation to this area is needed. Having idea of frequency, extent and responsibility of delay can provide insights of early planning to control these factors and improve project performance.
Work from Chan and Kumaraswamy (2002) from Hong Kong industry gives four major causes of delay in Hong Kong industry which are as follows:
Project scope
Project complexity
Project Environment
Management related attributes
The above four factors were studied with their constituent casual factors to gain more insight and understanding of their significance. They were summarized in following figure:
Figure 2.3 Summary of principal factors affecting construction durations of projects
He gave another table comparing factors causing delay in construction projects in various economies. It gives an overview of common factors in these economies. It gives a clear understanding of various countries at once.
Countries where survey was conducted
US
UK
DEVELOPING COUNTRIES
TURKEY
NIGERIA
SAUDI ARABIA
HONG KONG
INDONESIA
Inclement weather
Labour shortage/ Low labour productivity
Poor subcontractor’s performance
Variations (design change/ extra work)
Unforeseen ground conditions
Materials shortage/ late material delivery
Inadequate construction planning
Financial difficulties
Delays in design work/Lack of design information
Poor site management
Impractical design
Poor communication
Inappropriate type of contract used
Lack of designer’s experience
Inaccurate estimating
Table 2.2 Source: Chan and Kumarswamy (2001)
Ogunlana and Promkuntong studied and compared construction industry of Thailand and other economies. Study involved delays experienced in the High Rise Building construction projects in Bangkok, Thailand. According to them Resource supply problem were most acute problems of the construction industry in boom years. Project suffered delays due to inadequate supply of cement, technical personnel were overstretched, and demands from owners to do frequent changes etc. are the major causes for delay in developing economy.
Sabasivan and Soon (2007) conducted study of causes of delay in Malaysian construction industry. They conducted a survey and 150 participants were involved. They came up with 10 most important causes of delay which are as follows:
Improper planning of contractor.
Poor site management from contractor
Inadequate experience of contractor
Improper payments and finance from client
Subcontractors problem
Material shortage
Labour supply
Failure and availability of equipment
Improper management information system
Mistakes during construction stage.
Saudi Arabia
Assaf et al
Slow preparation and approval of shop drawings
Delays in payments to contractors
Changes in design/design error
Shortages of labour supply
Poor workmanship
Lebanon
Mezher et al
Owner had more concerns with regard to financial issues
Contractors regarded contractual relationships the most important
Consultants considered project management issues to be the most important causes of delay
Saudi Arabia
Al-khal and Al-Ghafly
Cash flow problems/financial difficulties
Difficulties in obtaining permits
“lowest bid win first� system
Jordan
Al-Moumani
Poor design
Changes in orders/design
Weather
Unforeseen site condition
Late deliveries
Kuwait
Koushki et al
Changing orders
Owners financial constraints
Owner’s lack of experience in the construction business
UAE
Faridi and El-Sayegh
Slow preparation and approval of drawings
Inadequate early planning of project
Slow decision making of owners
Shortage of manpower
Poor site management and supervision
Low productivity of manpower
Saudi Arabia
Assaf and Al-Hejji
Change in orders by the owner during construction
Delay in progress payment
Ineffective planning and scheduling
Shortage of labour
Difficulties in financing on the part of contractor.
Hong Kong
Chan and Kumaraswamy
Project scope
Project complexity
Project environment
Management related attributes
Florida
Ahmed and Azhar
Design related
Construction related
Financial/economical
Management/ Administrative
Code related
Acts of God
Table 2.3 Summary of previous studies of the causes of delay in construction project some data from above table is taken from Sweis et al (2008)
A total of 73 factors and 8 major groups of causes of construction delays were identified through intensive literature reviews in order to consider maximum factors. These factors will be helpful in data analysis so as to forecast delay at planning stage and treat it as risk so that risk management methodologies can be implemented to delay so as to mitigate and minimizing it.
These eight major categories can be brought down as shown in figure.
Fig 2.4 Classification of delay groups.
All major 8 groups can be brought down to 2 major groups which are Internal and external causes. Internal is further subdivided in owner, consultant, contractor and resources. Resources are further subdivided in Material, equipment and labour.
Overall if we need to classify groups for the causes of delay 5 major groups covers all 73 factors they are Owner, Contractor, Consultant, Resources and External.
These causes and classification will help us to rank and treat delay as a risk at planning stage so as remedial measures can be applied. Though in spite of all studies and delay causes know till now it is hard to forecast delay because it’s very unpredictable, we can’t analyse frequency of delay due to some reason in a project. Sometimes external causes are so dominating that co-ordination of internal groups get disturbed and project faces delay.
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