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The construction industry plays an important role in the economy of countries and provides the necessary services to achieve the needs and welfare of societies. For this, attention should be given to this sector. The research aims to indicate the most important causes of conflicts in construction projects, the most important reasons for the failure of construction contracting companies, and to study the relationship between conflicts and failure of contractors in the construction industry. This study uses the questionnaire method to achieve its objectives. The target participants are contractor of grade 1 and 2 in Palestine. Eighteen (18) conflict factors and 17 influencing factors in contracting failure are identified and tabulated in a questionnaire form. Results show that the main conflict factors include: delaying monthly payments from the project owner, frequent variation orders, the quality of work is poor, rework, and delay in delivering the works according to the schedule. While the main factors of contractors failure are: cash flow problems, conflict between parties, bidding strategy, local political conditions and low profit due to high competitions. The results show a correlation between conflict and contracting business failure. The results of the research would be of great importance to those interested in the construction industry, as they contribute to identifying the causes of major problems in the construction sector and help in its renaissance and development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While contractors may experience financial failure if they bid on an inappropriate project, bidding on the right project may allow them to profit substantially. Therefore, understanding the various factors that influence the bid/no-bid decision is crucial for construction companies in determining whether to pursue a project. The present study aims to identify the critical factors influencing contractors' bid/no-bid decisions. A total of 112 responses were collected from a questionnaire survey to rate the relative importance of 22 factors, and these factors were then analyzed based on the type of project and the contractor's years of experience. The results indicate that the client's ability to pay, clarity of the scope of work, project cash flow, the need for work, and availability of qualified labor are the most critical factors influencing contractors when making bid/no-bid decisions. The factor "previous experience in similar projects" was statistically significant among building and infrastructure projects, while "project location" was statistically significant among contractors with different years of experience. Finally, factor analysis identifies the six major underlying groups: client-related factors, bidding-related factors, contractor-related factors, market-related factors, economy-related factors, and project-related factors. The study's findings can help contractors better understand the factors influencing their bidding-related decisions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research endeavors to delve comprehensively into the ramifications of behavioral guidance policies pertaining to construction waste resource utilization (CWRU) on the behavioral awareness and attitudes of Chinese construction contractors. The implicit attitudes of 98 construction contractor workers toward construction waste collection, sorting, and reuse were quantitatively assessed by simulating different types of behavior-guided policies using the External Affective Simon Task (EAST) method with unconscious reaction time as an indicator. At the same time, the questionnaire survey was combined to collect and analyze the scores of these workers' exogenous attitudes toward CWRU, with a view to revealing the contractors' intrinsic behavioral awareness and exogenous attitudinal tendencies. The study reveals that economic incentive behavioral guidance policies are pivotal in fostering the collection, sorting, and reuse of construction waste. Furthermore, it novelly uncovers the distinct advantages of laws and regulations frameworks in safeguarding the fundamental aspects of construction waste collection. Notably, publicity and education behavioral policies emerge as a cornerstone in elevating the significance of construction waste collection and sorting, highlighting the cruciality of enhancing public awareness and knowledge to propel CWRU. The results of the study not only provide empirical evidence to understand the inherent attitudes of construction contractor workers toward CWRU behavior but also provide practical support for future policymakers. By advocating for economic incentives, strengthening regulations, and leading education, the multi-pronged approach promotes China's CWRU accelerates the green transformation of the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Across Indian cities, daily wagers gather every morning at large intersections or crossroads (nakas) where they seek work for the day from small construction contractors. In the satellite city of Navi Mumbai (New Mumbai), some of these daily wagers are reconstituting themselves into a class of ‘disadvantaged, crossroad workers’. This article provides an ethnographic narration of how class is experienced, constituted and asserted at a street crossroad. Through the space of the naka, daily wagers combine their different experiences of caste, religious and regional disadvantage into a collective identity of crossroad workers. As a collective, they seek and gain recognition as workers by the state, even if their everyday terms of work continue to be largely unprotected by law. While such reframing of disadvantage has long been part of social movements in western India, their contemporary politics is conditioned by workers’ alienation from new town‐making projects, where they are seen as temporary labor migrants and must contend with landed, socio‐politically dominant groups vying for control over the city. This article contributes to growing scholarship on the resocialization of labour movements, as both work and class organizing change dramatically, particularly in contentious urban spaces like Navi Mumbai. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Human activities are related to obtain economic, technical, social and environmental benefits. The road construction process participants and road users have direct or indirect benefits from elaboration of new infrastructure. The number of the benefits received by individual entities is publicly discussed by politicians, lobbyists, experts and other decision-makers without having quantitative estimates of benefits, i.e., often relying on intuition or considering theoretical reasoning. The paper suggests a system of 19 benefit entities (criteria) assigned the ranks given by experts. The study involved three categories of experts, including 35 road engineers, 36 transport engineers and 61 road users. The values of the concordance coefficients obtained as a result of the conducted research were found significantly higher than critical values and showed that the opinions of the experts in each category were consistent (not contradictory). This made it possible to consider the average of the opinions of the expert group as a reliable result of solving the problem. Rank averages were replaced by the normalized weights of criteria using Average Rank Transformation into Weight-Linear (ARTIW-L) and - Nonlinear (ARTIW-N) methods. The global averages of criterion weights were used employing the Inverse Hierarchy for Assessment Main Criteria Importance (IHAMCI) method thus calculating the normalized weights of the road-related classified entities (three main criteria). The findings prove that road users benefit the most (weight 0.3485), the road construction contractor (weight 0.3325) is in the next position and the road owner (investor) takes the weight equal to 0.3190. The generated research data can be used for justifying the rationality of road investment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reliance of contractor selection for specific construction activities on subjective judgments remains a complex decision‐making process with high stakes due to its impact on project success. Existing methods of contractor selection lack a data‐driven decision‐support approach, leading to suboptimal contractor assignments. Here, an advanced node2vec‐based recommendation system is proposed that addresses the shortcomings of conventional contractor selection by incorporating a broad range of quantitative performance indicators. This study utilizes semi‐supervised machine learning to analyze contractor records, creating a network in which nodes represent activities and weighted edges correspond to contractors and their performances, particularly cost and schedule performance indicators. Node2vec is found to display a prediction accuracy of 88.16% and 84.08% when processing cost and schedule performance rating networks, respectively. The novelty of this research lies in its proposed network‐based, multi‐criteria decision‐making method for ranking construction contractors using embedding information obtained from quantitative contractor performance data and processed by the node2vec procedure, along with the measurement of cosine similarity between contractors and the ideal as related to a given activity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study delves into the multifaceted landscape of Building Information Modeling (BIM) adoption and implementation across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region's construction industry. Employing an online survey methodology, the research scrutinizes the varied profiles of contractors. Through regression analysis, the study investigates the impact of institutional pressures on the contractors' BIM adoption, implementation, encountered barriers and challenges, expected benefits and outcomes, and related expertise and training. The analysis then extends to evaluate the interrelationships among such BIM variables. The key findings reveal significant influences of institutional pressures on BIM adoption and benefits as well as their expected benefits and outcomes but less impact on overcoming BIM barriers and challenges and enhancing expertise and training. The research highlights the limited role of BIM expertise and training in the adoption, implementation, and realization of its benefits and outcomes within the MENA construction sector. Furthermore, the study concludes that barriers, challenges, benefits, and outcomes don't have a significant effect on BIM's adoption and implementation. The study also evaluates the primary benefits and outcomes of BIM alongside the main barriers and challenges encountered. Crucially, the research identifies and dissects the salient barriers to BIM deployment, such as awareness and expertise deficiency, financial and human resource constraints, training shortages, and resistance to change. This study not only provides a detailed snapshot of the BIM landscape but also lays the groundwork for addressing the persistent challenges and harnessing the full potential of BIM in revolutionizing construction methodologies in the MENA region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research involves several PLN substation projects in the Maluku and Papua regions. The subject of this study consisted of 25 respondents, namely 1 Project Manager, HSE Engineer and project supervisor. The questionnaire that has been given is then analyzed using the severity index method. The results of K3 risk identification on 44 risk variable indicators with high variables are found in the categories of product purchase and control, work safety in SMK3 and monitoring standards. The highest level of K3 risk to cost performance in substation construction projects in Maluku and Papua is the specification of the purchase of goods and services, the verification system of purchased goods and services, emergency planning and recovery, and labour health monitoring. The allocation of K3 risk in substation construction projects in Maluku and Papua is the most allocated risk shared between the owner and the contractor. The most K3 risk response is by holding and partially allocating to the owner by transferring. Recommendations for mitigation of K3 risks in substation construction projects in Maluku and Papua are by preparing procedures for work steps/related documents that are jointly supervised between the owner and owner. Then it is necessary to form an organization related to K3 that will be responsible for emergencies, work accidents and monthly reporting to the local Manpower Office. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contractors' low-carbon construction behaviors (CLCB) are pivotal in advancing decarbonization during the construction phase. However, there exists a notable gap in the comprehensive exploration of the multifaceted factors and mechanisms influencing CLCB. Therefore, this study aims to systematically identify the factors influencing CLCB in China, examine the interrelationships among these factors, and pinpoint the key determinants. Based on topic modeling of Latent Dirichlet Allocation (LDA), influencing factors are identified firstly from the pertinent literature. Subsequently, the causality degree and centrality degree between these factors are assessed by the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL), followed by the establishment of a hierarchical structure using the Interpretive Structural Modeling (ISM) method, culminating in the identification of pivotal factors. Findings reveal that (1) 21 influential factors influencing CLCB are identified. (2) "Incentive policies for relevant stakeholders" and "Low-carbon regulation and supervision" emerge as key influences. (3) CLCB should be guided by policy and subjective awareness, fortified by market and management support, underpinned by technology, and directly driven by economic considerations. This research furnishes valuable insights for promoting low-carbon development during the construction phase, thereby assisting the construction sector in achieving carbon peak and carbon neutrality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Estimation of cost and duration of grading a particular area provides important information for contractors and construction machine manufacturers. In this study, cost and duration of excavation by dozer is estimated by simulating the movements of the dozer. Specifications of the dozer, soil conditions and site conditions are defined to the simulator. The simulation considers tire penetration, rolling, grade, hauling, as well as cutting resistances and estimates the necessary force to be applied. The simulation implements an autonomous grading algorithm established for electric powered dozers which starts grading from a local highest point to prevent uphill excavation and hauling. The algorithm determines the necessary maneuvers to reach local highest point, excavate or haul the earth pile to the dump area. The simulation runs until the objected elevation is obtained at each portion of the excavation site. The simulator calculates the consumed energy, time, and total cost of the excavation. The excavations of 30x45 square meter area by one existing electric dozer and five updated versions of it are simulated. The simulation of the excavation is computed in 23 seconds for the smallest and 10 seconds for the largest dozer. The cost of grading and pushing the excavated material at most 20 meters away is estimated as less than 5 cents/m3 for the lead-acid battery powered dozer and 8 cents/m3 in the average for the lithium-ion battery powered dozers. The simulation revealed that electric powered dozers have less unit excavation cost than diesel powered ones, also larger dozers consumes less energy than the smaller ones. The developed simulation technique is implemented without any numerical errors and the technique can be beneficial for the construction machine manufacturers to optimize their designs and for the contractors to select the most suitable construction machine among the present alternatives. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evaluating and selecting appropriate contractors is critical to the success of specific construction projects in the building industry. Existing approaches for addressing this problem are unsatisfactory due to the ignorance of the multi-dimensional nature of the evaluation process and inappropriate consideration of existent risks. This study presents a DEA game cross-efficiency model with loss aversion for evaluating and selecting specific contractors. The competitiveness of the evaluation process is modeled using game theory with respect to the adoption of the cross-efficiency model. The attitude of the decision maker toward risks is tackled with the use of loss aversion, which is a phenomenon formalized in prospect theory. As a result, the proposed approach can adequately screen available contractors through prequalification and adequately consider the attitude of the decision maker toward risks, leading to effective decisions being made. An example is presented to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed model in evaluating and selecting appropriate contractors for specific construction projects. The results show that the proposed model is effective and efficient in producing a unique solution for contractor selection through appropriate modeling of the multi-dimensional contractor selection process and adequate consideration of the competition between the contractors and the attitude of the decision maker toward risks in practical situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents an automated text-based information extraction model for analyzing the competitive landscape of the international construction industry. The proposed model comprises named entity recognition (NER) and relation extraction (RE) models. From news articles, the NER model identifies major participants in the international construction industry, whereas the RE model automatically extracts their relationships, particularly in the bids and awards stage. Based on the extracted information, bids and awards networks are generated. This study presents an illustrative competitive landscape analysis focusing on the Middle East construction market using social network analysis. Furthermore, this study introduces the construction contractor activation index (CCAI), which is a metric designed to quantify the engagement level of each construction participant in bidding activities. The correlation coefficient between the CCAI and the revenue of following year of Korean contractors was 0.490 at a significance level of 0.001, confirming the potential application of the CCAI as a leading indicator in predicting a contractor's revenue. The proposed model is expected to facilitate data-driven decision-making for improved market entry and bidding strategies, benefiting policymakers and practitioners, specifically those aiming to expand internationally but lacking experience and reliable information. This study introduced a natural language processing (NLP)-powered information extraction model. The proposed model is expected to help practitioners automate the review of documents during in-house investigations, saving a considerable amount of time. In addition, this study presented a competitive landscape analysis of the international construction industry focusing on the bidding stage via social network analysis (SNA) based on the extracted information. An international contractor often becomes a new entrant to the target market when prompted by a new project. The findings are useful for analyzing market dynamics and thus developing national policies and a firm's strategies from a macro perspective. Policymakers and practitioners can utilize the results of this study to determine the niche market and recognize new entrants within rapidly changing circumstances based on up-to-date news articles. In particular, the CCAI, which represents the influence of construction participants based on the bidding activities, is expected to be used as a leading indicator for revenue forecasting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into project management to improve project outcomes. It discusses the scientific and artistic aspects of project management and different approaches to project planning. The article highlights the importance of comprehensive planning and the use of fundamental and supplemental methods. It also discusses the potential of AI technology, such as ChatGPT, in project management but notes the need for access to relevant knowledge. The article concludes by emphasizing the importance of improving project management knowledge for the effective use of AI technology. [Extracted from the article]

This study is focused on the problem of contractor selection for the implementation of a solar power plant project to produce electricity from sustainable sources for the needs of the company Voćar. The goal of this research is to select a construction contractor to install a solar power plant using sustainability criteria. With this power plant, the company Voćar can reduce its electricity costs and contribute to the production of sustainable energy. A total of three main sustainability criteria were used, in which six auxiliary criteria were symmetrically distributed. With these criteria, six suppliers were analyzed, and expert decision making was carried out with the application of the fuzzy–rough approach. To define the weights of the criteria, the SWARA method was utilized in this study. Based on the findings of this method, the most important criteria are the ecological criteria. Using the CRADIS method, the contractors were ranked, and the results show that contractor C6 has the best results and is the first choice for implementing this project. Choosing the best supplier increases the sustainability of project implementation and the realization of the expected effects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Saudi Arabia leads the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in the construction industry, with 63% of the region's future projects and $1.4 trillion in building and transportation projects. Previous studies have shown that 60% of construction projects are behind the schedule. One of the reasons behind this delay is the inappropriate selection of contractors for construction projects; therefore, the development of a contractor performance assessment model is needed for construction projects in Saudi Arabia. The proposed model includes the major key performance indicators (KPIs) used to measure contractors' performance in construction projects. Afterward, a questionnaire is conducted with construction professionals to recommend the important KPIs to consider while developing the model. The analytic hierarchy process decision-making technique is applied for assessing relative priorities among the identified KPIs based on expert or decision-maker consensus. The results show that the time category is the most important in selecting the best contractor, emphasizing the significance of timely project completion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Egyptian market often suffers from delayed or unappropriated quality delivery projects. And this is due to many economic, political, and climatic reasons unique to each country, but what concerns us in this research is the role of the accountable contractor for project execution. Therefore, contractor selection is an essential step, along with project design and the feasibility study. And this is what this paper aims to do: study and discover the most essential factors that must be considered and evaluated when selecting a contractor from the viewpoint of the key relevant parties in the Egyptian construction industry. A survey was carried out through literature reviews of international journal-published research to get the most common important factors from different countries worldwide. Therefore, using them to conduct a questionnaire distributed to a sample of specialists in different fields of the Egyptian construction industry to quantify respondents' opinions and to deal with human linguistic and vague descriptions, triangular fuzzy sets have been used to represent each specialist's perception. So, forty-eight factors were aggregated in a questionnaire to be evaluated by decision makers who expressed their rating of contractors' performance in linguistic terms, and these factors were converted using the fuzzy Delphi technique into numerical values used as equation inputs, resulting in accurate and preferably main seven factors, which make the selection process more consistent and realistic. Those factors are recommended to be taken into consideration and evaluated for each candidate contractor. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given that roofing contractors in the construction industry have the highest fatality rate among specialty contractors, understanding the root cause of incidents among roofers is critical for improving safety outcomes. This study applied frequency analysis and decision tree data-mining techniques to analyze roofers' fatal and non-fatal accident reports. The frequency analysis yielded insights into the leading cause of accidents, with fall to a lower level (83%) being the highest, followed by incidence sources relating to structures and surfaces (56%). The most common injuries experienced by roofing contractors were fractures (49%) and concussions (15%), especially for events occurring in residential buildings, maintenance and repair works, small projects (i.e., $50,000 or less), and on Mondays. According to the decision tree analysis, the most important factor for determining the nature of the injury is the nonfragile injured body part, followed by injury caused by coating works. The decision tree also produced decision rules that provide an easy interpretation of the underlying association between the factors leading to incidents. The decision tree models developed in this study can be used to predict the nature of potential injuries for strategically selecting the most effective injury-prevention strategies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research endeavors to delve comprehensively into the ramifications of behavioral guidance policies pertaining to construction waste resource utilization (CWRU) on the behavioral awareness and attitudes of Chinese construction contractors. The implicit attitudes of 98 construction contractor workers toward construction waste collection, sorting, and reuse were quantitatively assessed by simulating different types of behavior-guided policies using the External Affective Simon Task (EAST) method with unconscious reaction time as an indicator. At the same time, the questionnaire survey was combined to collect and analyze the scores of these workers’ exogenous attitudes toward CWRU, with a view to revealing the contractors’ intrinsic behavioral awareness and exogenous attitudinal tendencies. The study reveals that economic incentive behavioral guidance policies are pivotal in fostering the collection, sorting, and reuse of construction waste. Furthermore, it novelly uncovers the distinct advantages of laws and regulations frameworks in safeguarding the fundamental aspects of construction waste collection. Notably, publicity and education behavioral policies emerge as a cornerstone in elevating the significance of construction waste collection and sorting, highlighting the cruciality of enhancing public awareness and knowledge to propel CWRU. The results of the study not only provide empirical evidence to understand the inherent attitudes of construction contractor workers toward CWRU behavior but also provide practical support for future policymakers. By advocating for economic incentives, strengthening regulations, and leading education, the multi-pronged approach promotes China’s CWRU accelerates the green transformation of the construction industry.

The paper presents a model that aims to support the construction contractor in the process of construction workforce planning by verifying initial assumptions about the planned number of man-hours, determined using a widely available and widely used method. The construction of the mathematical labour planning model of was based on the fuzzy sets theory. As a result of the operation of the model, four detailed coefficients are obtained, which, after applying the weights of normalized groups of factors, allow to determine the overall result of the model. The model, by verifying the planned number of man-hours, directly influences the employment planning process at a construction site and also supports the scheduling of the overall progress of the works, making it assumedly closer to reality in terms of the involvement of employees as well as the execution time of the construction works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reasonable location of treatment plants can improve the recovery rate of construction and demolition waste (C&DW). However, most studies ignore the impact of uncertainty or are based on known probability information. This study establishes an optimization site selection model using a robust method, which takes into account the uncertainty of the recycling amount of C&DW and the demand for recycled products. The immune genetic algorithm is applied to solve and analyse the model. Chongqing, the only municipality in south-west China, is taken as a case study. The results show that: (1) transportation costs affect the behaviour of construction contractors in recycling C&DW; (2) site selection schemes and total costs vary with changes in the disturbance ratio and uncertainty level, and the uncertainty of supply has a greater impact on the costs; and (3) when the uncertainty level and disturbance rate reach a certain value, the site selection scheme changes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents a case study on reducing rejects in the oil and gas industry during the mechanical completion stage of projects. The rejection rate of exception items was causing delays and increased costs. The inspection team used the DMAIC method of lean Six Sigma to identify causes, prioritize them, and develop recommendations. By implementing these recommendations, the rejection rate was reduced to below 5%, resulting in cost and schedule savings. The article also provides a list of sources for library patrons to further research project management, risk management, process mapping, Six Sigma tools, Pareto charts, root cause analysis, and control plans. These sources offer valuable information and insights on these topics. [Extracted from the article]

Over the past decade, prefabricated construction has increasingly gained popularity in addressing environmental concerns while meeting the high construction demand, particularly in developing countries. Accordingly, the concept of stakeholder engagement increasingly garnered attention as it is highly relevant for understanding and explaining the relationships among various stakeholders, like contractors, suppliers, and producers, especially within the fragmented context of prefabrication. To further the field, this study aims to provide a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative analysis for stakeholder engagement in the realm of prefabricated construction via a value-based network. This value-based network analysis is utilized to model multiple relationships between stakeholders as value exchanges, thus enabling to engage them though management with a focus. Specifically, A total of 110 values were identified and analyzed among 12 stakeholders throughout the whole lifecycle via an extensive literature review, interviews, and questionnaires directed at prefabrication practitioners in China. This data collection process garnered 194 valid responses with a 64.7% response rate. The findings show that enhancing stakeholder engagement requires improvements in both the abilities and experiences of developers, and in the collaborative relationships among key stakeholders. These improvements can be achieved by prioritizing the engagement of prefabrication consultants and encouraging the government to issue policies that support developers, producers, and consultants in fostering collaboration. This in-depth network analysis offers practical insights for decision-makers in the management of core stakeholders and value-based relationships, thereby improving stakeholder engagement. Additionally, it expands the current body of knowledge on stakeholder engagement by incorporating the value-based network analysis into the exploration of its stakeholders and relationships. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intricacy of the construction supply chain and the interactions among various actors in construction projects highlight the important role of Information Technology capability and efficient information flow integration to guarantee seamless coordination and communication among stakeholders. This study investigates the association between Client/Owner, Contractors, supplier's Information Technology capabilities, and information flow integration. Regression analysis is used to examine the data and ascertain the relationships between these variables. The findings indicate that information flow integration, each entity's Information Technology capability, and construction project performance are positively correlated. Information Technology capability allows key players in a construction project to integrate information and ultimately improves the performance of construction projects. According to the research, better project performance may result from strengthening Information Technology capability and integrating information flow among the Construction Project's partners. The significance of investing in Information Technology Capability and encouraging efficient communication and cooperation between clients, contractors, and suppliers are important takeaways from these findings for patrons in the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- Construction projects are fraught with hazards that have a detrimental impact on schedules, estimates, and quality. The project execution phase exposes contractors to internal and external hazards, either implicitly or explicitly. A project's achievement is contingent on the proper handling of internal and external hazardous concerns. This study investigates the connection linking internal and external risk factors with risk management in Saudi Arabian contractors and the moderation role of government bylaws linking this connection. Research methodology -- This study investigates 303 Saudi Arabian contractors to explain the influence of internal hazards, external hazards, and governmental by-laws on risk management by applying the Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) method. Findings -- The outcome indicates that internal hazards (active leadership, team competency, and skills and effective communication), external hazards (technological, political, cultural, and economic factors), and government by-laws (also, its moderation role with external hazards) are positively connected with risk management resulting a moderate effect. Furthermore, the outcome also highlights that the moderating influence of government by-laws with internal risk factors is insignificant. Research limitations -- The current research model depicted 74.4% of the overall variation in risk management. Other latent variables can explain the 25.6% remaining overall variation in risk management which can be taken into account for future aspects of effective construction risk management. Practical implications -- This study raises the efficiency of Saudi Arabian contractors by improving project output delivery. This study made recommendations to boost risk management usage. Originality/Value -- This research was conducted for the first time in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and it is an original work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Industry 4.0 technologies have business process re-engineering capabilities that can radically improve process performance and increase the effectiveness of communication and collaboration between actors. Despite the significant emphasis on technology adoption, the slow uptake rate can be attributed to ignoring nontechnical aspects, such as systemic change concerning people and processes. There are ample Industry 4.0 maturity models in the literature; however, a common criticism of maturity models lies in their applicability. This paper attempts to address this criticism by presenting two case studies where maturity assessments for general contractors were conducted to understand how ready they were to adopt to Industry 4.0 and what they could do to improve their current readiness. This paper aims to answer the following research questions: (1) Can the Industry 4.0 maturity modelling literature be applied in an organisational context for a construction general contractor? (2) Do construction general contractors relate to such an assessment? To answer the research questions, a comprehensive assessment of the Industry 4.0 maturity of two general contractors was conducted, thereby intending to support their strategic planning and systematise their transformation in Industry 4.0. The richness of the findings lies in the detailed understanding of the organisation's current Industry 4.0 capabilities and future plans, thereby establishing the applicability of the maturity attributes identified from the literature and confirming whether the managers of a construction organisation can relate to them. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: The paper aims to outline the issues related to the standardisation of risk management in construction enterprises operating in the conditions of uncertainty. In particular, it discusses possible applications of international risk management standards in the operations of major Polish contractors as participants of investment and construction processes. This is particularly important now, when contractors have to operate in the conditions of volatile and uncertain surroundings. Design/methodology/approach: The paper uses the method of synthesis, as well as deduction and the basics of induction. The authors draw on their own expertise and experience gained from long-term research into risks faced by organisations from the construction industry in their operations. The publication uses a case study analysis; for that an analysis of source materials available on the Internet was carried out. All the deliberations included in the paper are based on a review of scientific literature. Findings: The discussions here focus on the applicability and the utilitarian dimension of the knowledge contained in the paper. They concern major organisations which render construction and assembly services in Poland. In the context of the research one of the biggest listed construction companies in Poland, included in the stock-exchange index of WIG-Construction, is analysed. For the needs of the paper the organisation is anonymised. Some conclusions apply to all the remaining 35 companies from the WIG-Construction index. Research limitations/implications: The paper presents only the selected and most relevant issues related to the standardisation of risk management in the operations of construction enterprises. The conclusions drawn from the findings apply to the construction risk, which is seen in the science as a separate research category. They also refer to the problem of uncertainty. The empirical illustration is provided by one construction enterprise only; in the scientific research a case study analysis has both its advantages and its drawbacks. Practical implications: The paper contains a proposal that standard risk management solutions should be implemented by construction contractors, which have to deal with uncertainty and risks in their operations. The implicational dimension of the paper is determined by the discussed issues. Originality/value: The deliberations contained in the paper may be seem as casting light on the problems of risk management standardisation in the operations of construction companies. The paper constitutes an attempt to transfer the frameworks – offered by the subdiscipline that is referred to in the scientific literature as Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) – to construction organisations i.e. contractors. The deliberations contained in the paper may encourage broader empirical studies in this field to be conducted in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prescriptive approaches currently dominate decision-making in the case of general contractor–subcontractor contractual relationships. This leads to a general contractor–centric contractual practices and demonstrates a lack of exploration from the subcontractor's perspective. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to develop a reliable and validated scale for analyzing the subcontractor–general contractor relationship in the construction industry. Through a review of literature and the application of quantitative methods such as reliability testing and confirmatory factor analysis, the study develops key concepts and measurement scales that allow for an analytical decision-making framework from the subcontractor's perspective. The resulting scale can help practitioners make informed, analytical decisions in building relationships between subcontractors and general contractors, leading to a more holistic approach. This study is unique in its focus on developing a scale specifically for analyzing the subcontractor–general contractor relationship in the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: Cost overruns remain a persistent problem in the construction industry. Although various cost management strategies have been implemented, innovative approaches are still required. Therefore, the authors attempted to introduce and test a new cost management strategy for the construction industry. Design/methodology/approach: Zero-based budgeting (ZBB) is one such method whose effectiveness has been proven in different industries over many years. Therefore, the authors initially developed two different frameworks related to the integration of ZBB into a multinational construction contractor and the application process of ZBB for a construction project in this study. Then, the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed frameworks are tested via an actual field study in a mega construction project. Findings: The results show savings of 0.81% of the total project budget and 4.74% of the focused cost items by following the ZBB framework compared to the traditionally estimated project budget. The feedback received from the employees in the construction company shows that ZBB could be efficiently implemented during ongoing construction projects. Research limitations/implications: The authors believe that implementing new cost management strategies such as ZBB will open doors to deal with the complex cost overrun issues and improve construction cost performances. Originality/value: This manuscript is the first actual application of the ZBB cost management approach in the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are different studies has introduced different methods and techniques to improve the performance and to reduce the delays in delivering construction projects. The selection of qualified contractors has a crucial importance which ensures delivering projects within the required time, quality, and cost. There are different national classification systems for contractors which are based on some similar and different criteria. This paper aims to develop a new model that helps in evaluating contractors in pre-tendering stage. The establishment of this model starts by listing 39 different criteria that are extracted from previous related studies. Then, 9 experts conducted a pairwise comparisons of those criteria using Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) which resulted in 10 important criteria that should be used in evaluating construction contractors in pre-tendering stage. Those 10 criteria were then evaluated by 21 specialized mangers in different contract departments to get the weight of each criterion using Multi Attribute Utility Theory (MAUT) which converts those different criteria that have different attributes dimensions to one unified measurement scale identified as the multi-attribute "utility". At the end, the selection criteria are evaluated using numerical and nominal scale to calculate the final score using the weights of those criteria which will allocate the contractors that can go to the tendering stage. As this model introduces a method for evaluating contractors before tendering stage, it also allows the clients or owners redefine the selection criteria and to decide the minimum result to allow contractors to move to the tendering stage. So, this model will help decision makers to ensure that the contractor's characteristics and capabilities meet the requirements of the allocated project. Effective and objective qualification processes will serve both parties, owners, and contractors, in delivering construction projects. The criteria of this model are established based on the requirements of the construction industry in Saudi Arabia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Failure to meet the deadlines for the implementation of investment-construction projects is a problem in all countries of the world and leads to unstable activity of construction companies. This article studies the most important destabilizing factors affecting the main indicator of sustainable activity of construction companies, i.e., the duration of the implementation of an investment-construction projects. To determine and assess the impact of destabilizing factors on the duration of implementation of selected investment-construction projects, a survey was conducted in which a number of customers, consultants, and contractors involved in construction projects took part. Questionnaires developed on the basis of a cluster sample were sent to respondents, and 84 responses were received in response to the assessment of destabilizing factors. To analyze the received and grouped information, structural equation modeling using the Smart-PLS program was used. As a result of modeling, a number of results were obtained, the most important of which was the identification of the main reasons that lead to an average (20–50%) increase in the duration of projects in the construction sector. The most significant was the lack of an appropriate procurement program for materials; inefficient scheduling by contractors and instability of construction production, poor-quality processing of incoming information, and untimely decision-making due to changes in projects during their implementation. Destabilizing factors contribute to an increase in the duration of construction sector projects, which leads to time overruns, cost overruns, and an increase in the negative impact on the overall use of resources. As a result of the study, a set of recommendations was formed, the most important of which is the use of possible compensatory measures that can allow construction companies to eliminate the risks of disrupting construction deadlines for sustainable activities. These compensatory measures include: 1. recommendations to customers of the construction project, 2. recommendations to contractors, and 3. recommendations to the consultant. Moreover, the control of destabilizing factors that can cause delays, the improvement of contracts, and the precise and clearer definition of all elements of the project can help to reduce the duration of construction, and will allow companies to maintain sustainable activities in the construction industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on a legal case that determine the legality of the tax authority offsetting civil law claims against the taxpayer's tax refund requests, based on the Value Added Tax Act. Key questions discussed include the legitimacy of the offset, the existence of civil law claims, and their direct relation to tax refunds, while also considering the jurisdiction of the tax court and previous legal precedents.

The aim of this study is to question the need for alternative project delivery methods to foster the integration of concrete 3D printing in the construction industry. For this purpose, a literature review was carried out. The results indicate that the traditional planning and construction process will have to be reconsidered. On the one hand, new roles and changes in responsibilities may emerge, and, on the other hand, a holistic design process and early contractor involvement will be required to fully exploit the potential of concrete 3D printing. Therefore, alternative project delivery models need to be adopted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main goal of the studies was to collect information on the impact of the identified risk factors on the amount of costs incurred in the life cycle of buildings. The own studies were focused especially on residential and non-residential buildings. The studies consisted in obtaining expert opinions on the subject of the research involves in the non-random (arbitrary) selection of a sample of respondents from among specialists corresponding to the industry purpose of the studies and the research material. The research used the expert questionnaire method. The studies were divided into three stages. In the first stage, the identification and division of risk factors in the life cycle of buildings was performed. Then, experts assessed 45 selected risk factors that may affect the amount of costs incurred in the life cycle of buildings. In the last step, the research results were developed in the form of a checklist knowledge base, containing information about the potential impact of the identified risk factors in the life cycle of buildings on the amount of the corresponding components of life cycle costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In line with the principles of modern design a building structure should not only be safe but also optimized. In deterministic optimization, the uncertainties of the structures are not explicitly taken into account. Traditionally, uncertainties of the structural system (i.e. material parameters, loads, dimensions of the cross-sections) are considered by means of partial safety factors specified in design codes. Worth noticing, that optimal structures are sensitive to randomness design parameters and deterministic optimal solutions may lead to reduced reliability levels. It therefore seems natural to extend the formulation of deterministic optimization with the random scatter of parameter values. Such a formulation is offered by robust optimization and reliability-based design optimization. The applicability of RBDO is strongly dependent on the availability of the joint probability density function. A formulation of non-deterministic optimization that better adapts to the design realities is robust optimization. Unlike RBDO optimization, this formulation does not require estimation of failure probabilities. In the paper using the examples of steel beams, the authors compare the strengths and weaknesses of both formulations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]