Síntesis final

Subramani et al., (2014) assert that adequate importance should be given to projects meeting that focus on client satisfaction in the construction project. Client satisfaction is achieved when attention is given to managing variations in construction projects such as time delays, cost overruns, design changes and so on. Subramani et al., (2014) also added that for construction clients to attain some levels of satisfaction, cost, quality and time are three important factors that cannot be over looked. Maintaining a proper balance between the three elements is essential to the successful delivery of construction projects which invariably leads to client satisfaction. One major reason why this elements need to be properly managed is because overruns that’s could arise in the course of project execution can be avoided and prevented if focus is given to the client needs early enough, however, there are some unavoidable costs such as those due to unanticipated events which cannot reasonably be prevented. Cost overrun of a project refers to increase that occur in cost or budget of a project which is accrued to the client in the course of the project (Kaming, et al., 1997). This occurrence is due to overspending or over stretching the budget allowances as a result of making changes or encountering unforeseen problems. One major approach that can reduce cost overrun in projects is proper capturing of clients requirements in the client briefing stage (Subramani et al., 2014). Some factors have been identified to be responsible for cost and time variations in construction projects, factors such as (Kaming, et al., 1997, Cox, et al., 1999, and Radujkovic, 1999).

 Changes in client requirements

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 Unpredictable weather conditions; and

 Fluctuations in the cost of building materials.

Chimwaso (2008) in his study identified more critical factors that affect the successful delivery of project objectives which invariably leads to client dissatisfaction, some of these include; incomplete client documentation at the time of tender, additional work requested by client, changes in client’s brief due to improper capturing of requirements or due to unforeseen changes, lack of cost planning/monitoring during pre-and- post contract stages, site/poor soil conditions, adjustment of prime cost and provisional sums, re-measurement of provisional works, logistics due to site location and lack of cost reports during construction stage. Chimwaso, (2008), further identifies three important factors that contribute to construction project variations, these include incomplete client briefs during knowledge (requirement) capturing phase (78%), clients request for additional work which might sometimes but not always arise from improper capturing of requirements at the briefing stage (57%) and changes in client’s requirements during the briefing process (52%). Baloyi and Bekker (2011) agreed with the work of Chimwaso by highlighting factors affecting cost and time overrun in construction projects. These factors include additional work or changes to client’s requirements, not giving adequate time to the requirement elicitation process in the client briefing stage. All this factors have been identified to affect project outcomes which eventually lead to client dissatisfaction if such factors are not triggered by the client.

Proverbs et al., (2000) posits that over-specification which means capturing requirements that are not necessary, has been one of the major problems in the UK construction industry. Reducing specification levels is not about cutting corners, but about cutting out waste and unnecessary cost. It has been suggested, that over-specification adds approximately fifteen per cent to the cost of construction work. They reported that many offices are designed to cope with sixty per cent more staff than actually occupy the building. In addition, buildings have been found to have an unnecessary number of lifts, toilets and escape routes for the number of people in occupation; as well as the over-specification of lighting, small power and heating and ventilating systems. A comparative study between UK and US building found that clearer requirements, lower specification, more prefabrication, and on standard components could lead to spectacular savings in the cost of construction (Proverbs et al., 2000). Kaming et al (1997) conducted a survey and identified factors influencing construction time and cost overruns on high-rise building projects in Indonesia through a questionnaire survey administered on 31 project

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managers. A number of variables were identified first of which was client changes, inadequate briefing, inadequate planning, material shortages, inaccuracy of material estimate, skilled labour shortage, inadequate requirement capturing from clients, long waiting time for approval of drawings, poor site management and supervision, mistakes and discrepancies in client documents and so on. Al-Momani (2000) examined 130 public projects in Jordan and concluded that the main causes of delays include changes initiated by architects, client requirement, weather, site conditions, late deliveries, economic conditions, and so on. Hsieh et al (2004) conducted a statistical analysis in 90 metropolitan public work projects in Taiwan and identified problems in client brief and planning as main causes of change orders. Furthermore, based on analysis of 46 completed building projects in the UK, Akinsola et al (1997) identified and quantitatively examined factors influencing the magnitude and frequency of variations in building projects. These factors include: client characteristics, especially lack of prior experience and knowledge of construction project organisation and the production processes; project characteristics, such as type, size, complexity and duration of the project; and project organisation factors, such as; client duration, percentage of client completed before tender, procurement and contract type, adequacy of information provided, and number of sub-contractors. Some major limitations of this studies carried out reflect that some of these studies are over 10 years old. Also, most of the studies were carried out outside the UK. Although construction projects worldwide share some common characteristics, there are also some country specific conditions. For example, it is highly unlikely that “shortage of materials” and “import of materials” are major factors in the UK.

Olawale and Sun (2010) conducted a survey on cost and time variations in the UK construction industry, taking into considerations the aforementioned limitations, the administered 250 questionnaires to top construction companies and construction consultancies. The ranking of the factors affecting cost and time variation in the construction project industry shows client changes as the key factor responsible for time and cost overruns. This was overwhelmingly the top project cost and time control inhibiting factor from the questionnaire survey results analysis. This was also the case during the interviews as it was acknowledged by practitioners during the interviews as being a major obstacle to effective project cost and time control. The main issues revealed during the interviews include:

 The impact of a client change on project cost and brief is often underestimated.

 The client group is often not able to provide the information in time, which results in difficulty of client management.

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 There is a general decline in the production of detailed client which is perceived as one of the greatest causes of client changes especially with the increased usage of the client and build procurement route.

 Lack of detailed client specification leads to contractor pricing the risk but also looks for every loop hole in the specification document to increase cost, reduce specification etc.

 There is a lack of clear distinction between client change and client development. As a result, project partners often argue whether a client change is actually a change or a development where there would not be the need for additional cost and time compensation.

Majority of the studies mentioned in this research identify changes to client requirements as a major factor to cost and time variation in the construction industry. Most of the factors discussed show correlation with factors affecting the client briefing process; this goes to show that if the factors affecting the CB process can be address, chances that it will lead to increased client satisfaction are higher. All the factors identified and discuss in this section can affect client satisfaction if adequate attention is not given to the knowledge (requirement) capturing or elicitation process during client briefing. One important point to note however, is that, the more the client is dissatisfied due to project not successfully meeting the client needs, the less chance there are for the business providing the construction services to have a productive profit margin, as this will affect business referrals and potential opportunities to carry out further business. The next section develops a conceptual framework that supports the use of KC techniques in effectively capturing client’s requirement during the client briefing process for improved client satisfaction.