Much attention is being paid to the significant role of logistics in the construction industry, with reference both to the total supply chain and to its individual links, called the 'internal logistic system'. Rationalization of activity in the logistics sphere leads to lowered production costs...

The UK's NJCC Code of Procedure for Single Stage Selective Tendering (now withdrawn) and its successor, the CIB's Code of Practice for the Selection of Main Contractors are criticized in the light of decisions of the common law courts with regard to regulation of the tendering process. It is...

Life cycle assessments (LCAs) are used to evaluate the environmental impacts attributable to products and processes. For construction projects, LCAs can be used to assess the pollution associated with the manufacture of building materials for the construction process. Despite the reliability of...

In response to impending skills shortages and changing employment patterns, the UK construction industry recently has made considerable efforts to attract more women to its professions. However, despite their increasing representation, there are indications that women experience difficulties in...

Morality is fast becoming an integral part of the mandate for business through both societal and regulatory pressures. Collusive tendering is one of the moral choices facing decision-makers in the construction industry. This paper describes an empirical investigation of the attitudes and...

A model is presented that predicts the total cost of plant maintenance (i.e. direct cost of maintenance plus indirect cost of lost production) and is derived studying a random sample of tracked hydraulic excavators. Analysis is based on the machine history file data of 33 plant items, modelled...

Partnering in construction has been presented as a potentially important way of improving construction project performance through the direct benefits it can bring to both clients and contractors. However, there is still considerable debate about the nature and merits of a partnering approach....

Cash retention is a common means of protecting an employer from a contractor's insolvency as well as ensuring that contractors finish the work that they start. Similarly, contractors withhold part of payments due to their sub-contractors. Larger contracts tend to be subjected to smaller rates of...

Investigations have been carried out which suggest that motivation of employees in all industries is affected by the environment or culture in which they work. Research undertaken in Melbourne, Australia investigated the effect of the workplace environment encountered on a construction site on...

The UK construction industry has identified benchmarking as one of a number of initiatives to assist in the drive for major improvements in efficiency and economy. At the outset, the industry struggled to see how a technique based upon comparison of similar goods and processes could be used...