EVALUATING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF PROJECT DELIVERY METHODS IN SOUTH-EAST NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

This research studied “evaluating the effectiveness of project delivery methods in South-East Nigeria”. There are alternatives delivery methods for executing a project, the choice of selection are mostly done on familiarity bases, which is purely subjective and may not offer a better approach to optimize the overall success of the project. An extensive review of literatures in relation to the study was made with respect to text and similar work done by other scholars. The choice of a delivery method of a project needs to be subjected to a proper evaluation, with respect to the key pertinent issues (client objectives). The types of project delivery methods was sieved first through an extensive literature review; and about Nine (9) methods were identified. An evaluation on the delivery method is further carried out using related literatures. Eleven (11) pertinent issues (client and project objectives) were used to assess how effective a delivery method responds to a pertinent issue. A field survey was furrther carried out to generate reactions from experienced professionals in the industry, this was achieved by first conducting a pilot study to enable determine those factors or issues that actually affects a project in the course of its delivery. A total of ten (10) respondents were randomly selected from the parent population using an open-ended question. The first ten (10) issues or factors that had the highest percentages of occurrence or frequencies from their responses were further used as the major issues to evaluate the delivery methods. However Time, Cost, and Quality were the issues with the highest frequencies. The field survey was conducted in four (4) South-Eastern states in Nigeria, a population of one hundred and fifty (150)  respondents was used for the study, their responses were used in generating of the data needed for the evaluation. The data generated were analyzed using frequency tables, simple percentages, mean scores, and z-test. The result obtained was futher used in evaluating and ranking the delivery methods, using the Spearman Rank Correlation Analysis. The evaluation reveals that Time, Cost, and Quality are three close-ended interdependent issues, which borders on every project. Some delivery methods respond positively to any of these issue, but yet, negatively to any of them at the same time. Hypothetical testing among these three (3) key issues was conducted to see if there is any significant relationship among them in evaluating a delivery method using the z-test. The result revealed that time, and quality has a significant relationship, which could be either positive or negative; cost and quality equally have a relationship, but time and cost has no significant relationship in evaluating a delivery method. However the result of findings was used in the summary and recommendation. However no project delivery method can be said to possess all the advantages required in a project with respect to the pertinent issues. But a project should be subjected to a full and proper evaluation before selecting a particular method.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1      BACKGROUND OF STUDY

The construction industry is one of the important Economic Sectors especially in a developing country like Nigeria, Infact, no sector of the economy can develop effectively without infrastructural facilities e.g. building, roads etc. Osofisan (2007), states that “in many developing countries like Nigeria, the construction sector to which the building industry belongs is one of the biggest contributors to the Gross National Product (GNP)”. She further concluded that “Similarly, it has been noted that in some developed countries, more than 16 percent of their GNP is devoted to the construction industries”. The construction sector is a sub-sector of the economy that creates basic infrastructure needed to accommodate inputs of all other sectors. That’s is why construction products are regarded as the essential of life and economic development.