Underlying lapses in project planning and monitoring of building construction projects in Sri Lanka

Abstract

The building sector contributes greatly to the economic growth and social stability of nations and in most countries, and it is often the largest contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Planning in constructions, is a key concern of contractors, and the process of planning is increasingly growing in complexity, since it can be regarded among the managerial roles of building projects to be the most critical role that gives results to any given process. Planning in building constructions, is described as setting out a series of instructions in appropriate detail to inform the project team precisely what needs to be completed, where and what tools to be used to effectively achieve the project's deliverables. Monitoring is also an important aspect as planning. Accordingly, a thorough literature analysis is conducted with the aim of identifying the planning and monitoring methods, processes and to identify the lapses in project planning and monitoring in the Sri Lankan construction context. In this context, several planning and monitoring methods which are used in the construction industry were identified such as project scheduling, critical path method, programme evaluation and review technique, network diagrams, 3D and 4D modelling, project planning tools. Further, several lapses in planning and monitoring namely, vague definition of the scope of project budget and schedules, adversarial attitudes of project participants, deficient communication between project partners, shortage of site workers and technical personal were also identified through the literature. Thereafter, comprehensive semi-structured interviews were conducted with industry experts selected from four (04) construction projects to identify their views on the insights gained from the literature review. Based on the research findings, it can be identified that considering the impact of identified lapses in project planning and monitoring and their impacts on project deliverables such as cost, quality and time is significant. Accordingly, it is important to analyse and to identify the underlying lapses in project planning and monitoring of building constructions in Sri Lanka.