The development of strategic planning concept process model for small medium enterprise (SME) in the construction industry

Small Medium Enterprise (SME) construction organisations are facing very demanding and competitive environment in the construction industry. The demanding and competitiveness of the construction industry required SMEs to be continuously vigilant to current situation and plan to the future. Many of these organisations failed to respond to ever changes environment and some of them were forced to fold their business. These pressures began to force SMEs construction organisation to shift the current short term planning to more strategically planning method such as strategic planning. SME construction organisations should engage in strategic planning activities to enhance their chances of survival and success due to this concept forces organisation to learn and adapt to current environment. Despite high fatality and have only 60 percent of survival rate, many SME construction organisations are reluctant to embrace strategic planning. Therefore, the aim of the study was to develop strategic planning model for guiding SMEs in their future planning. Additionally, the objectives of this research were to identify and investigate the influencing factors and barriers that hinder strategic planning application in SME construction organisations. In satisfying this aim and objective, the research was undertaken in two distinct phases. In phase one, an exploratory study that utilised semi-structured interviews to examine ‘why’ and ‘how’ strategic planning is used in practice by SME construction contractors was undertaken. A total of 22 in-depth interviews were conducted with owners and managers. It was revealed that most firms adopted a myopic and informal approach to strategic planning, with the main barriers to its implementation were plan in owner’s mind, unrealistic, busy, and un-forecast industry. In phase two, the findings from the interviews, in conjunction with the literature, were used to develop series of questions, which were subsequently tested using questionnaire survey. The questionnaire survey gathered quantitative data from a total of 133 SMEs regarding strategic planning practices and the factors that influenced its application. A number of non-parametric statistical techniques were used to analyse the data, which included relative index and factor vii analysis. The influence factors were identified and ranked by using relative index method (RI). The analysis revealed that five (5) variables that were considered the primary influence factors to strategic planning were people, market, technology, project, and financial. In addition, four (4) barriers including managerial, organisational, planning, and industry issues can be obstacle to the effectiveness of the implementation process of strategic planning. Subsequently, the research developed a generic strategic planning model for SMEs and was validated externally by construction industry practitioners. The proposed model provides basic fundamental for the SMEs in the construction industry to engage strategic planning process to enhance their organisation performance

The Development of Building Information Modelling (BIM) Performance Model for the Malaysian Construction Industry

The concept of Building Information Modelling (BIM) has attracted greater attention in the Malaysian construction industry since its introduction in 2007. Several projects in Malaysia such as Pusat Kanser Negara and Convocation Hall, UTHM have adopted this concept. One of the benefits of BIM is the projection of a 3D image of the proposed building, which allows stakeholders to get a better idea of the actual building. BIM also improves the planning and design process of the project and thus the quality of the actual building. These advantages of the BIM concept are crucial for the success of the project. Despite the implementation and benefits of BIM, there are still uncertainties about the actual performance of organisations using BIM. This is because there are no evaluation tools or models in Malaysia that can evaluate BIM performance of BIM. Therefore, this study aims to develop a performance model for the implementation of BIM in the Malaysian construction industry. In this study, the AHP technique was used to collect data. The AHP results have successfully assigned weights to all BIM performance metrics. The consensus value also exceeds 50%, which confirms that the experts' agreement on the weighting of the metrics is acceptable. In conclusion, the proposed and developed BIM performance model could be useful to practitioners, especially the government and CIDB, in evaluating the performance of BIM organisations in the Malaysian construction industry. These measurement results could be a basis for future improvements for BIM organisations

Improving communication between client and contractor during construction project in Nigerian construction industry

Communication today has become the crucial element of every organisation. In construction industry, during construction project, information need to be accurately and timely communicating among project stakeholders in order to realized the project objectives. Poor communication between client and contractor during construction project is one of the major factors that affect project delivery. Therefore the objectives of this research are to investigate the causes and effects of poor communication between client and contractor and the suitable methods to improve communication between the client and contractor. The objectives where achieved by identifying the causes and effects of poor communication between client and contractor, and the methods to improve communication between the client and contractor in the Nigerian construction industry through a statistical analyses. Structured questionnaire was used to 120 combinations of clients and contractors in the construction industry with 80% of response rate. Several analyses such as frequency, mean, ranking and Regression were used to analyze the data. The results shows that, lack of corporation and selfish interest were the most causes of poor communication between the client and contractor. Contrastingly, maintaining integrity and sufficient trust were the most significant ways to improve communication between the client and contractor. The hypothesis reveals that, poor communication between the client and contractor has significant effects on construction projects. This research will profit the client and contractor, and the various project stakeholders in the construction industry, by providing adequate knowledge regarding the causes and effects of poor communication between the client and contractor, so that necessary steps to be taken for prevention. Also it will provide knowledge about the appropriate strategies (method) to employ in order to improve communication between the two parties

The Challenges of Drone Application in the Construction Industry

Drone technology is currently being used in many areas, and the increasing prevalence of drones is evident in all areas. Drones were first used for military purposes and now they have become an important part of military actions. In recent years, drone technology has become widespread in various industries including journalism, filmmaking, aerial photography, shipping, delivery. However, drone technology is still in its infancy and has not had a significant impact on the construction industry in Malaysia. Therefore, the study's objective was to assess the challenges preventing the application of drone technology in the Malaysian construction industry. The methodology used for this research was qualitative, which is data collection through interviews with three drone experts. The respondents in this research were directors of construction companies that use unmanned aerial vehicles for their operations. The findings showed that drones faced the challenges of unfamiliarity, lack of knowledge, reticence to adopt new technologies, privacy issues, and security issues. These challenges faced by drone technology will not prevent its application in the Malaysian construction industry. However, Government support is important in promoting the use of drone technology and raising people's awareness of drone technology in the construction industry

Competency Requirement for Effective BIM Modeller in Design Phase of a Construction Project

Building Information Modelling (BIM) technology has been well received by the Malaysian construction industry, yet the adoption is still in stage 2. Malaysian construction industry is still in implementation of CAD to BIM in design phase. The competency of BIM Modeller in fully utilising BIM is still lacking and this has curtailed the usage of BIM during design phase. According to CIDB, in order to adopt BIM, organisations need to invest in BIM tools such as BIM modeller course. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to identify the benefits of competency among BIM modeller during design phase, to determine the competency needed by BIM modeller and to propose recommendation to improve BIM modeller competency during design phase. The primary data were collected from interview with 4 BIM Modeller to achieve the first and third objectives and subsequently, the second objective was achieved based on 40 received questionnaires from BIM modeller. The data analysis method used are content analysis and descriptive analysis. The results show that all respondents agreed that growing awareness, improve design, shorten timescale and reduce cost are benefits of competency among BIM modeller. The competency that important are including ability to manipulate, navigate and review a 3D model and knowledge of BIM authoring tools. Meanwhile, a few recommendations including BIM training among worker, tactical development, enhance effective collaboration, capabilities of maintaining exchanged data and mobilizing client on importance of BIM are all agreed. The competency of BIM modeller are significant in a project to improve the project design quality. It is hoped that the findings of this study could be useful as a reference to give awareness of construction industry stakeholders towards the importance of BIM modeller competency. It also can be a guide for government and other parties to improve BIM competency level for BIM modeller

The Use of BIM Technology in Construction Design Phase

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is a digital information technology used to transmit information involving architecture, engineering, and construction as a set of interactions in the construction industry. When BIM technology is used as a management system in communication, the delivery of information is more accurate, clear, and detailed. However, problems occur when the construction industry lacks cost in the acquisition of such technology, in addition lack of knowledge and skills to use BIM technology process in project management. Therefore, this study identifies the factors use of BIM technology, the level of absorption, and the measures to increase the users of BIM technology in construction design phase. The method used in the data collection process is the questionnaire method. The population involved in this study includes architects and engineers, with a total of 80 distinguished populations. However, only 55 sets of questionnaire forms were recovered. The respondents involved in this study were architects and engineers. The result of the data analysis obtained shows that knowledge and skills need to be improved in the process of operating BIM technology. However, small-scale organisations cannot afford to own this technology because of the high cost and the need to undergo training in managing the technology. In an effort to coordinate the policy on the use of BIM technology, CIDB provides a centre as a reference for all parties involved in the industry to know the true concept of BIM technology and to undergo courses offered related to the use of BIM technology. These findings benefit those involved in achieving a more systematic use of BIM technology in organisational management involving the construction design phase

The Use of BIM Technology in Construction Design Phase

Building Information Modelling (BIM) is a digital information technology used to transmit information involving architecture, engineering, and construction as a set of interactions in the construction industry. When BIM technology is used as a management system in communication, the delivery of information is more accurate, clear, and detailed. However, problems occur when the construction industry lacks cost in the acquisition of such technology, in addition lack of knowledge and skills to use BIM technology process in project management. Therefore, this study identifies the factors use of BIM technology, the level of absorption, and the measures to increase the users of BIM technology in construction design phase. The method used in the data collection process is the questionnaire method. The population involved in this study includes architects and engineers, with a total of 80 distinguished populations. However, only 55 sets of questionnaire forms were recovered. The respondents involved in this study were architects and engineers. The result of the data analysis obtained shows that knowledge and skills need to be improved in the process of operating BIM technology. However, small-scale organisations cannot afford to own this technology because of the high cost and the need to undergo training in managing the technology. In an effort to coordinate the policy on the use of BIM technology, CIDB provides a centre as a reference for all parties involved in the industry to know the true concept of BIM technology and to undergo courses offered related to the use of BIM technology. These findings benefit those involved in achieving a more systematic use of BIM technology in organisational management involving the construction design phase

The Challenges of the Implementation of Construction Robotics Technologies in the Construction

Robotics is one of the advanced technologies that is used in various aspects of the construction industry to improve the efficiency and the performance of construction projects. The adoption of construction robotics technologies is significant strategies to maintain and improve productivity in the construction industry. Even though the implementation of construction robotics technologies can improve productivity, many Malaysian contractors do not embrace the existence of robotic technology and still practicing the traditional method due to many challenges. Therefore, the objectives of the study were to investigate the challenges of the implementation of construction robotics technologies in the Malaysian construction industry and the improvement method. The data of the research were achieved through a quantitative method, which questionnaires were distributed to 180 G7 contractors in Kuala Lumpur. Subsequently, 50 valid responses were retrieved and the collected data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Science (SPSS). The findings revealed that the two (2) main challenges of the implementation of construction robotics in Malaysia were the high cost to maintain and update process the technologies. The finding also showed that strategic partnership with a high technology company was the best method to improve robotics implementation. In conclusion, this study is believed to be useful information in improving the implementation of robotics technologies in construction projects particularly around Klang Valley

Influence of Blockchain Technology Application in Education on Online Teaching Resources Sharing

With the continuous expansion of educational view, blockchain technology develops into the cutting-edge applied science and technology of educational information construction. Blockchain technology can effectively solve such problems as information security and trust crisis in the current application of big data in online education by virtue of its characteristics of decentralization, traceability, multi-party consensus mechanism, and high trust. Blockchain technology is conducive to protecting online educational resources, strengthening the transparency of online teaching resources, simplifying the copyright transaction process, and thus enhancing the scientific and technological innovation ability of teachers. Studies regarding the blockchain technology application in education were analyzed, and the influences of the four aspects of the blockchain technology application in education on online teaching resource sharing were explored. Results showed that the Cronbach α coefficient of the questionnaire designed in this research was 0.856, and the KMO value was 0.859, indicating its good reliability and validity. The cross-institutional learning record storage space, learning certificate management mechanism, and collaboratively developed educational ecosystem of the blockchain technology application in education obviously promoted online teaching resource sharing at a significance level of 5%. The results are important reference values for strengthening the integration of educational resources under blockchain technology, improving the application mechanism of online digital educational resources, and improving the accurate service quality of online educational resources

Measuring Sustainability Elements in PR1MA Affordable Housing

Housing has become a vital instrument in daily life, not because of the cost and function’s only but housing can provide other attributes of a feasible urban life. Thus, Malaysia's government has struggled to cater affordable housing to counter economic concerns and adopt a sustainable housing development aspect for a better quality of life. However, even the housing affordability of low and middle-income earners has been improved, but some of them are remains in debating. The objective of this paper is to measure the sustainability element in PRIMA affordable projects in Malaysia as well as to determine the satisfaction level of sustainable affordable housing practice among PR1MA residents. The data were collected from 97 survey forms distributed amongst PR1MA residents through Google form and self-administered and were considered as useful data for further analysis. The results show that only social and environmental elements were determined as sustainability elements in PR1MA affordable housing in selected PR1MA projects in Malaysia. Moreover, the results revealed that majority respondents have low satisfaction level on economic sustainability in sustainable affordable housing practice within their residential area. Thus, this result has a significant contribution to the stakeholders who are directly or indirectly participated in affordable housing development and specifically PR1MA projects. This result also helps the policy makers and practitioner for emphasizing several important elements for developing affordable housing in future