Qualitative content analysis from the lean construction perspective: A focus on supply chain management

The performance of projects in terms of targeted objectives has always been a very contentious issue in the construction industry. The constant issue at stake is the inability of projects to satisfactorily meet agreed delivery targets. In order to address this quagmire, performance improvement tools such as supply chain management (SCM) were introduced into the industry. The central theme of this discourse is thus concerned with the need to promote performance improvement in construction through the exploitation of the concepts inherent in SCM from the perspectives of lean construction researchers as documented in the annual International Group for Lean Construction (IGLC) conferences. The methodological approach adopted for the discourse is qualitative in nature as recent SCM literatures available on the IGLC web portal were subjected to a qualitative content analysis. The research outcomes, which have implications for South African construction, attempt to offer solutions to the mirage of performance-related project management and/or supply chain problems, especially in terms of improving ‘how organisations working together’ overcome complexities and deliver value to stakeholders

A DISCOURSE ON LEAN CONSTRUCTION IN AFRICA, USING A SUPPLY CHAIN EXAMPLE

Published ArticleA discourse is defined as a unit of speech or writing longer than a sentence. It is about knowledge and its construction within a group or domain. A discourse therefore tends to focus on how a particular phenomenon is represented within a social group. This special issue on lean construction in Africa (LCiA) is an attempt to highlight how the knowledge and practice of lean construction is understood by researchers in the region. This opening article opens the discourse with why implementation of lean supply chains should be encouraged in a sector where projects are delivered by multiple parties with different interests. The differences in project interests require application of supply chain management and lean principles to avert well-known construction problems. The subsequent articles in this special issue motivate for the use of lean construction concepts, and tools by practitioners in the region

Infrastructure project performance in the South African construction sector: Perceptions from two provinces

In recent times, project performance improvement, especially in developing countries, has captured the interest of a number of construction management researchers, as indicated in notable journals and conferences in the domain. The quest for excellence, waste elimination, and value creation underpins such research endeavours that encompass the interest of clients, consultants, and contractors so that cost overruns, low productivity, and poor quality can be reduced in the industry. The driving force behind this discourse is the need to examine management strategies that could engender performance improvement in infrastructure construction from the South African perspective. The survey was conducted among general contractor (GC) members of the South African Federation of Civil Engineering Contractors (SAFCEC), consulting engineer members of Consulting Engineers South Africa (CESA), and selected public sector clients. Using inferential statistics such as Cronbach’s alpha, t test and Cohen’s d effect size measures for data analysis led to a range of findings. Such findings show that inadequate coordination between project partners may indeed result in high levels of defects, rework, and non-conformances in construction; poor interface between multidisciplinary designers could lead to delays in projects, and inefficient and unstable logistics management may, in fact, lead to haphazard processing of orders, storage of materials, and poor inventory management. In essence, it can be argued that being quality focused, managing construction logistics optimally and making sure that consultants who are working on a project are collaborating effectively offers significant scope for performance improvement in the construction of infrastructure projects in South Africa

THE IMPACT OF MINING INDUCED URBANIZATION: A CASE STUDY OF KATHU IN SOUTH AFRICA

Rapidity in urbanization has continued in the past decade despite the realisation that resources are finite. Commerce, migration, employment, industry configuration and population increases are factors that contribute significantly to the urbanization phenomenon. With respect to the contributions of commerce, mining activities have led to the advancement and regression of cities. An abundance of literature exists on the negative effects of urbanization and mining on the environment. The main reason for the research that produced this initial findings was to determine how urbanization, when induced by mining, impacts on the environment and how to ensure future sustainable urbanization. The research was done qualitatively through interviews of knowledgeable individuals within the relevant industries within the mining town of Kathu, in the Northern Cape of South Africa. The research found that centralization of employment, resources and trade lead to urbanization, which is primary driven by the mining industry. In addition, it was observed that mining as a factor that accelerates urbanization, also impact negatively on the environment. Thus, there is a need for a rethink about mining induced urbanisation so as to reduce pollution and other adverse event of secondary activities that support the primary industry of mining

Implementation of Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment in construction: A South African metropolitan area study

The institution of Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) has had an impact on the economy in South Africa. Due to its extensive reliance on government procurement, BBBEE has had a substantial influence on the construction industry in terms of transformation imperatives. Although much has been achieved in the transformation of the sector, its empowerment initiatives are generally deemed to be less effective. This argument can be attributed to the impediments encountered by industry stakeholders, when implementing BBBEE. The central subject examined in this study pertains to the BBBEE implementation challenges in South African construction. In order to get to the depth of the identified issues in the reviewed literature, the qualitative method was employed for primary data collection. Eleven interviews were conducted with management representatives of major construction firms in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolis, through the use of a brief questionnaire and an interview protocol. The empirical findings that emanated from the study show that most of the respondents were aware of the challenges associated with BBBEE implementation in the construction sector. However, very few are presently addressing the difficulties. This lack of action frequently promotes the exploitation of BBBEE by concerned parties. This exploitation leads to unethical procurement practices in the form of ‘fronting’. Based on the literature reviewed and the data that were collected, it appears that deterrents must be addressed before the implementation of the BBBEE initiative can begin to yield the desired benefits for all concerned parties in South African construction

The impact of mining induced urbanization : a case study of Kathu in South Africa

Published ArticleRapidity in urbanization has continued in the past decade despite the realisation that resources are finite. Commerce, migration, employment, industry configuration and population increases are factors that contribute significantly to the urbanization phenomenon. With respect to the contributions of commerce, mining activities have led to the advancement and regression of cities. An abundance of literature exists on the negative effects of urbanization and mining on the environment. The main reason for the research that produced this initial findings was to determine how urbanization, when induced by mining, impacts on the environment and how to ensure future sustainable urbanization. The research was done qualitatively through interviews of knowledgeable individuals within the relevant industries within the mining town of Kathu, in the Northern Cape of South Africa. The research found that centralization of employment, resources and trade lead to urbanization, which is primary driven by the mining industry. In addition, it was observed that mining as a factor that accelerates urbanization, also impact negatively on the environment. Thus, there is a need for a rethink about mining induced urbanisation so as to reduce pollution and other adverse event of secondary activities that support the primary industry of mining

SMART CITY PERSPECTIVES OF BLOEMFONTEIN, SOUTH AFRICA

Published ArticleTo handle rapid urbanization, there is need to find new ways to manage complexity, increase efficiency, reduce expenses, and improve quality of life. The new ways are rooted in the concept of ‘smart city’. The concept theorize that emerging technologies would shape urban environments in varying ways that would include but not limited to the economy, mobility, governance, and living conditions of a city. While this concept is now a reality in major cities in developed economies, this is not the case in South Africa and the region. Against this background, an evaluation of socio-economic and environmental capital of Bloemfontein has been used as a case example to demonstrate the transformational requirements for a ‘smart city’ in South Africa. The evaluation utilised 74 indicators, and 30 factors of six smart characteristics, which include economy, environment, governance, living and mobility. Reviewed literature and semi-structure surveys were used for the evaluation, which suggests that Bloemfontein is lagging behind concerning key development indicators. In particular, the evaluation indicates that the city lag performance relative to mobility, economy, people and living sector, although environment and governance features appear to be promising. An overall evaluation of the indicators and factors points to a major scope for the city to transform to a smart city, if plausible actions are taken

BARRIERS TO THE SUSTAINABLE PROCUREMENT OF BUILT UNIVERSITY ASSETS IN SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA

Published Conference ProceedingsThe commitment of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to Sustainable Development (SD) seems to be yielding limited positive results. This is evident in the procurement of infrastructure within HEIs situated in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Besides being part of a wider study into Sustainable Procurement (SP) of infrastructure in SSA HEIs, this study reports on facilities directors’ perceptions of sustainable procurement in HEIs within SSA. A phenomenological research design was utilised. Forty-Three HEIs across two different countries in SSA- Nigeria and South Africa were selected based on purposive and convenience sampling. Facilities directors in these HEIs were interviewed through face-to-face and telephone interview sessions. Documents concerning the procurement of infrastructure were also reviewed. Emergent data from these sources were thematically analysed. Preliminary findings indicate that Business As Usual (BAU) mode of procurement has remained the norm in most of the HEIs in spite of their profess commitment to SD. Some barriers identified include: the seeming obsession of HEIs, acting as clients, with low front-end cost of project delivery; poor awareness of what SP entails; absence of skills required to champion the cause of SP within such HEIs, and non-specification of SD based requirements in the contracts documents. It is expected that this study would contribute to deepening existing knowledge concerning implementation of SD in HEIs in SSA

Promoting sustainable development implementation in higher education Universities in South Africa

Published ArticleThis study aims to review the zeal exhibited by universities in South Africa towards aligning institutional mandates of teaching, learning, research and community engagement to the sustainable development (SD) agenda. The implementation of the SD agenda across higher education institutions (HEIs) continues to draw attention from the wider society. This is because HEIs are increasingly being looked up to for leadership in this regard. However, although several studies are quick to identify various factors which have driven the adoption of sustainable practices in HEIs, the paucity of studies seeking to identify the drivers for SD implementation remains glaring. This is particularly so in developing countries like South Africa. Design/methodology/approach – To confirm the exploratory data from desktop study on public university engagement with sustainability in South Africa, a single case study was conducted in the Central University of Technology (CUT). The single case study design adopted semi-structured interviews and document reviews as data collection techniques. Purposive snowballing sampling technique was strictly adhered to in the selection of interviewees. Interviewees were selected on the basis of their roles in the implementation of the CUT’s sustainability agenda. Findings – Data emanating from these interviews were analysed thematically using qualitative content analysis. Although a plethora of drivers were identified, there appeared to be a consensus between most of the interviewees that the quest for cost reduction remained the most significant driver for the viable implementation of the sustainability agenda at CUT. Research limitations/implications – It is expected that findings from this study would provide a platform for the development of effective implementation strategies in South African HEIs. Also, the findings contribute to filing the extant gap observed concerning implementation and drivers for engendering SD implementation in HEIs in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) region. Practical implications – By highlighting the drivers for SD implementation, this study contributes to the development of a more receptive social ontology among various stakeholders in an HEI towards the agenda, particularly within the SSA context where there is low level of awareness and buy-in by these stakeholders. Originality/value – This study makes an original contribution to the research base of SD in HEIs and implementation

Enabling sustainable procurement of built assets in African universities : perspectives of facilities’ directors

Published ArticleThe commitment of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to Sustainable Development (SD) seems to be yielding limited results. This is evident in the procurement and delivery of built assets within HEIs in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This study reports on facilities directors’ perceptions of the challenges to sustainable procurement in HEIs within SSA. The identification of such challenges would contribute, significantly, to the extant discourse on how to stem the drift. A qualitative phenomenological research design is utilised. Forty-Three HEIs across two different countries in SSA- Nigeria and South Africa were selected based on purposive and convenience sampling. Facilities directors in these HEIs were interviewed through face-to-face and telephone interview sessions. Documents and webpages concerning the procurement of such buildings were also reviewed. Emergent data from these sources were thematically analysed. Findings indicate that Business As Usual (BAU) mode of procurement has remained the norm in most of the HEIs in spite of their professed commitment to SD. Challenges identified include: the seeming obsession of HEIs, acting as clients, with low front-end cost of project delivery; poor awareness of what SP entails; absence of skills required to champion the cause of SP within such HEIs, and non-specification of SD based requirements in the contracts documents. It is expected that this study would contribute to deepening existing knowledge concerning implementation of SD in HEIs in SSA