Content area
Abstract
Construction executives have long worked in an environment with little co-operation and limited trust amongst themselves. This is a major stumbling block for organisations in the construction industry when they endeavour to offer an effective quality management programme to their clients. In this research, the problem investigated is whether partnering relationships amongst the participating parties in construction projects can improve quality of product and service throughout the construction process, and if so, how can that improvement through partnering be successfully implemented.
Strategic quality management is a management strategy for quality improvement. This research investigates the feasibility of applying this approach to the construction industry for improving the inter-organisational relationships between customers and suppliers. The research framework for this study includes five objectives that focus on two major areas (quality improvement and partnering in construction) and their inter-relationships, specifically in terms of organisational links and customer (client and the participating parties) satisfaction. The research is an empirical study by (1) using literature findings to develop the framework and (2) collecting data using a questionnaire survey followed by interview for clarification and further information collecting.
The research findings indicate that benefits can be gained by time saving and cost effectiveness through partnering. The significant attainments are effective communication, joint problem solving and co-operative working relationship. The overall research shows that when senior executives make decisions to adopt partnering strategy amongst construction participants it will produce a better quality of product and services to enhance the customer satisfaction. It can therefore be concluded that the application of strategic quality management (by shifting from the traditional adversarial, confrontational approach towards a collaborative approach) in construction organisations is valuable in the construction industry.