TY - CHAP
T1 - Imperfect and late information: the greatest risks for construction contractors
AU - Stevens, Matt
AU - Smolders, John
AU - Geng, Linna
PY - 2025
Y1 - 2025
N2 - Perfect information delivered before it is needed is a rare construction input but is invaluable to the construction contractor. Efficacious planning is dependent on it. Decisions made once, earlier than scheduled, and not modified have many benefits. This paper theorises that 80% of required project information is available in the tendering instructions, plans, specifications, and client contract. The last 20% has to be furnished by external parties such as the client, governing authority, or vendors—risking lateness and incompleteness. This “last mile” can be costly to contractors—main and sub—since their average net profit before tax is single digits. Furthermore, these determinations are made after final design and tendering instructions are issued, affecting the bid phase forward and resulting in novel decisions such as logistics, plan, schedule, or payment, which affect planning, communication, and execution. This paper suggests that this is missing from quality and productivity models.
AB - Perfect information delivered before it is needed is a rare construction input but is invaluable to the construction contractor. Efficacious planning is dependent on it. Decisions made once, earlier than scheduled, and not modified have many benefits. This paper theorises that 80% of required project information is available in the tendering instructions, plans, specifications, and client contract. The last 20% has to be furnished by external parties such as the client, governing authority, or vendors—risking lateness and incompleteness. This “last mile” can be costly to contractors—main and sub—since their average net profit before tax is single digits. Furthermore, these determinations are made after final design and tendering instructions are issued, affecting the bid phase forward and resulting in novel decisions such as logistics, plan, schedule, or payment, which affect planning, communication, and execution. This paper suggests that this is missing from quality and productivity models.
KW - Information management
KW - Knowledge coordination
KW - Project determination
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=105005932879&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://go.openathens.net/redirector/westernsydney.edu.au?url=https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-96-1181-2_19
U2 - 10.1007/978-981-96-1181-2_19
DO - 10.1007/978-981-96-1181-2_19
M3 - Chapter
SN - 9789819611805
T3 - Lecture Notes in Civil Engineering
SP - 235
EP - 248
BT - Creating Capacity and Capability: Embracing Advanced Technologies and Innovations for Sustainable Future in Building Education and Practice, Building Construction Education and Industry, Volume 1
A2 - Sutrisna, Monty
A2 - Jelodar, Mostafa Babaeian
A2 - Potangaroa, Regan
A2 - Atapattu, Chinthaka
A2 - Samarasinghe, Don Amila Sajeevan
PB - Springer
CY - Singapore
ER -