Significance of minimizing non-value adding activities in construction processes using lean techniques

Abstract

Non value- adding activities (NVAAs) generated in the construction processes are recognized as major weaknesses that hinder performance and efficiency. Activities that do not add value to the final product are simply a waste and should be minimized or eliminated. The greatest obstacle to minimize NVAAs in general is failure to recognize it. Most of these activities are intangible and invisible. However fewer attempts have been made to minimize the NVAAs in construction processes. Lean construction is an effort to apply lean production principles to the construction industry to eliminate NVAAs from the construction processes and to maximize value to clients. However, the industry lacks an implementation framework to minimize NVAAs in construction processes and this research aims to develop a framework for minimization of non-value adding activities in construction processes using lean techniques. A detailed literature review was carried out to investigate the lean implementation in construction processes in order to identify the widely used lean techniques and to identify the NVAAs in construction processes. Quantitative research techniques were adopted aiming data collection from two different groups of professionals in order to recognize NVAAs in the construction processes in Sri Lanka and to investigate the current level of implementation of lean techniques in construction processes. This paper reports the level of existence of non-value adding activities and the level of implementing the lean technique in Sri Lankan construction industry and emphasizes the need for developing a framework for minimizing NVAAs in construction processes using lean techniques. Data collection of this study was limited to Sri Lankan construction projects initialed recently and their professionals by focusing the construction stage of building projects.