Improving quality in the construction industry
It is commonplace to describe the current business environment setting as turbulent. The marketplace has become more global and service-oriented and clients’ tastes have become more demanding and sophisticated. Under these circumstances, many firms have found it is increasing difficult to compete. To survive in the current business environment, it is necessary for companies to look for ways to improve quality and productivity in order to enhance their competitive edge.
Since the introduction of ISO 9000 in 1987, the number of organizations certified under the scheme has been constantly increasing all over the world. The implementations and certifications of quality systems on ISO 9001 have been a major activity for many organizations and have become a widespread phenomenon. Many studies revealed that effective implementation of ISO 9000 quality standards can benefit the certified organizations through the improvement of management control, efficiency, productivity, and customer services. According to a survey conducted by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), global ISO 9001:2000 registrations surpassed the 500,000 mark at the end of 2003, in which it can show the concerns of quality improvement.
Among all industrial sectors, the construction industry has the third highest number of ISO 9000 certificates. This indicates the construction firms’ active attitude towards the international standards series. In construction, the final product is produced by activities in processes. However, the construction process is not of a production line as in manufacturing industry but is composed of concurrent activities on a construction site.
Quality assurance in construction focuses on process control. In practice, it is more difficult to implement the scheme for quality assurance in the construction industry than in manufacturing industry due to the characteristics of the construction setting. Hence the proportion of the construction firms of ISO 9001 certified, which deemed ISO 9001 an effective quality management means, is not high.
ISO 9001 focuses on confirming process conformance from the initial development of a product through production, test, installation and servicing. Information management has been a key factor affecting the effective implementation of the standard. The information management system required for this standard is not just a database with predefined reports; rather, it is the support for trouble-shooting, decision making and knowledge management. Because of dispersed projects undertaken by a construction firms, effective information flows among project teams for a firm are very important in implementing quality assurance.
Information requirements in quality management
In the construction industry, contractors have to collect much external and internal information as information input for quality management. The external information required includes:
· client’s requirements on quality;
· project supervisors;
· relevant quality standards for checking;
· subcontractors; and
· material suppliers and vendors.
Furthermore, internal information required includes:
· organization structure;
· quality management system;
· quality management plan;
· information of construction technology;
· information of construction equipment; and
· workers.
The inputted information needs to be processed and utilized effectively and becomes conducive to quality management.
Information flows in quality management
A construction firm has three levels within its organizational structure including firm, sub-firms and project departments. The multi-level organizational structure renders many difficulties in information transfer and feedback. In general, the firm level, rather than sub-firms or project department levels, plays a pivotal role in certification of the ISO 9000 quality assurance systems.
“The construction industry has always been plagued with great difficulties in sharing information among participants.”
Much of the work, including quality manuals and procedures document writing, training, internal audit and management review, is organized and finished by the quality assurance group in the firm level. Indeed, all the project departments must implement the plan of quality assurance. Thus information flows, including information transfer and feedback among all the different levels in a construction firm, will form the necessary foundation for effective quality management and quality assurance.
The construction industry has always been plagued with great difficulties in sharing information among participants. In general two major kinds of information flows are information transferring from project departments to firm and information exchange between project departments.
Improving information flows
The construction industry has two particular characteristics:
1. there are many participants involved in a single project; and
2. there are various combinations of participants in different construction projects.
The former requires an effective information collaboration system to realize information sharing among multi-parties in a project. The latter requires that the information collaboration systems can be applied in different projects even though the combination of participants is different.
Given these two characteristics, a web-based approach can be proposed to develop a system for information flows in quality management in construction projects. The use of the internet as the communication platform can help information transfer more effectively during the construction process.
Developing a communication system for the multi-parties in construction projects to collaborate on the Web can also improve information flows in construction project management. On the other hand, new participants in different projects can also learn to use such a web-based information system in a short time and at low cost. It is clear that the technical problems can be overcome by utilizing the information and network technology that has prevailed in recent years.
Reengineering the existing information flow channels is necessary in the construction industry. For a project department, once it has found information on construction quality, such as an unqualified subcontractor or a material supplier, it should feed the information back to the firm immediately and transfer it to the other project departments at the same time. Currently, information feedback in a step-by-step manner is not conducive to quality management.
A sharing environment
The construction industry has always been bedevilled with great difficulties in sharing information among its participants. Information flows and exchanges are very important in implementing ISO 9001 and improving quality management. Because of the characteristics of the construction industry, information transfer is easier than information feedback in a construction firm’s quality management.
Thus it is important for construction firms to reengineer their information flow channels for decreasing risk due to information flow suspension. That requires firms to create a culture and environment conducive to sharing information.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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