Investigation of Project Delays: Towards a Sustainable Construction Industry

Aftab Hameed Memon (), Abdul Qadir Memon, Shabir Hussain Khahro () and Yasir Javed
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Aftab Hameed Memon: Department of Civil Engineering, Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology, Nawabshah 67480, Pakistan
Abdul Qadir Memon: Department of Civil Engineering, Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology, Nawabshah 67480, Pakistan
Shabir Hussain Khahro: Department of Engineering Management, College of Engineering, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia
Yasir Javed: Department of Computer Science, College of Computer Information and Sciences, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh 11586, Saudi Arabia

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 2, 1-17

Abstract: The construction industry is one of the key industries for any country. It has been observed that this industry is suffering from sustainable solutions during project execution. It is evident from the literature that most of the construction projects are seriously affected by delays. Pakistan’s construction industry also suffers similar challenges. After the COVID-19 pandemic, the construction industry is experiencing several challenges which have resulted in project delays. Thus, this study investigates the key challenges affecting the timely completion of construction projects. The challenges were discovered from the literature and investigated to analyze their significance towards a sustainable construction project. This study also observes the relationships between the key challenges using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). A structural model was developed based on the 55 common challenges identified from literature. Data collection was administered through a structured questionnaire survey using a 5-point Likert-scale. The challenges were grouped into six constructs. The outcome reported 20 critical challenges, with information and communication-related factors being the most important challenge in the construction industry. Contract management also significantly affects project time overrun. The created model served as a starting point for academics, researchers, and practitioners to create an effective system for regulating time overrun challenges.

Keywords: delays; project time overruns; construction industry; PLS-SEM; structural equation modeling; developing countries (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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