Some twenty years ago Robert Eccles argued for the theoretical existence of the quasifirm, a semi-integrated form of production in the construction industry, following a field study of home building firms in the USA. The study was aimed at substantiating some aspects of Williamson's transaction...

The paper presents the results of the first phase of a long-term study that addresses the determinants of the production arrangements by US building (commercial and residential construction) and non-building contractors (transportation, environmental and industrial construction). Empirical and...

The achievement of expected site productivity is one of the main characteristics of successfully completed projects. The productivity rates of concrete construction according to the learning curve theory are discussed in this paper. The study builds upon the records of variable productivity...

Using two sets of input-output tables, this paper analyses the role of the construction sector in the North and South regions of Italy, from 1959 to 1992. As expected, the sector has had differing impacts on the two regional economies over the years. In the highly developed North its importance...

Using OECD input/output tables at current and constant prices, this paper analyses the performance of the construction sector of eight highly industrialized countries - Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, The Netherlands, Japan and the USA - in the 1970s and 1980s. First, the main...

Two sets of input-output tables are employed in this paper to analyse the role of the Italian residential construction sector in the national economy. The analysis focuses on changes in construction technology over a period of some 30 years, ending in 1985, the last year for which such data are...

In 1992, Ranko Bon argued that in highly developed countries the relatively declining economic importance of the construction industry is followed by the absolute decline of its output. The shrinking volume has implications with production capacity that, at a certain point of economic maturity,...

The characteristics of the Italian construction market and firm operations are reviewed. The analysis focuses on the environments of the late 1980s and early 1990s, during which major scandals and economic recession ended a business paradigm based on closed competition. Discussion builds upon a...

Through a proposed interpretative framework the relationship between forms of transactional governance and type of information processing and communication media is analysed. Building projects are successfully completed through the development of federative mechanisms, such as cooperation,...

Eleven input-output tables are used for analysing the technological changes of the US construction industry from 1947 to 2002. Over the years, the industry has been characterized by a significant input shift that reflects the evolution of the USA towards services and away from a...