Plant and equipment management to minimize delays in road construction projects

Abstract

Construction is the ultimate objective of a design, and the transformation of a design by construction into a useful structure which is accomplished through proper management of human, material, machineries and equipment resources. A project manager must insure that these inputs are effectively coordinated to achieve an efficient construction process. “Delay” in construction is a project slipping over the planned schedule and is considered as a common problem in construction projects. Plant and Equipment (P&E) management is a complex procedure in a construction project. Machines are to be selected, arrived on site, are used and, when a project is completed, removed and returned to the company's plant depot or the hire company. Within this cycle various decisions and assessments are required to be made. These are related to above challenges and delays due such could be affected directly or indirectly by poor P&E management. Hence, introduction of proper construction P&E management criteria helps in minimizing the confusion created due to the above problems and further to cut down monetary losses. Therefore, this research aims to study the effects of improper P&E management on construction delays and to identify proper practices on P&E management to minimize delays. The paper discusses the theoretical background of the issue based on the findings of the comprehensive literature review done through refereeing to the published material. Research will be followed by a questionnaire survey to explore the situation within the Sri Lankan road construction projects as the field study. The data will be analyzed statistically in order to make conclusions and recommendations.