Fuzzy model for assessing delays in Egyptian residential projects

Purpose: Construction delays are a common problem in the Egyptian construction industry. Frequent delays in a project can lead to disputes and litigation. This paper aims to study and analyze the causes of construction delays. Design/methodology/approach: This research identifies delay causes in residential projects in Egypt and analyzes these causes with the relative importance index method. The feedback of construction experts was obtained through interviews. Subsequently, a questionnaire survey was prepared. Fifty-six different delay causes were identified and categorized into eight categories based on a literature review and interviews with 36 experts from the construction industry who represent owners, consultants and contractors. Findings: According to the highest values of the relative importance index, the top ten delay causes of residential projects in Egypt are determined. Statistical analysis is carried out using the analysis of variance method to test delay causes obtained from the survey, which revealed a good correlation between residential projects parties with respect to most of the delay causes. A fuzzy logic model using MATLAB is developed for determining the probability of delay of residential projects, and the model was tested in a real case study and was found to be satisfactory. Originality/value: Delay causes in residential projects in Egypt were identified, and these causes were analyzed using the relative importance index method and fuzzy logic.