Reworks causes and related costs in construction: case of Parand mass housing project in Iran

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the main reworks and their causes in a case study of the ongoing mass housing project in Iran. Using the real data captured from the project, the most important causes for reworks have been computed and prioritized. Design/methodology/approach More than 900 non-conformance forms filled in the construction site have been used to categorize reworks. Then, the frequency and cost of each rework group in the project have been estimated. Finally, using these data, the primary classification and sorting of the main causes of reworks have been specified. Findings Results show “Poor site supervision and inspection” with 24 percent of costs had the most impact and “unclear project management process” with about 6 percent of costs had the least impact on the formation of non-conformances. “Cost of each incidence” (COI) ranged from 0.67 for “The need to categorize the complicated operations” to 1.86 for “Unclear project management process.” Research limitations/implications The causes of rework which are not in contractor’s hand (like change orders from the client) have not been considered in this study. Originality/value Although some works have been done in rework causes, the key elements and causes of reworks in mass housing projects in developing countries have not been yet fully specified through the real data. Knowing the root causes of reworks can help project managers to remove them and reduce reworks costs in future projects. COI which is defined here for the first time and computed in a relative concept could be a good criterion to compare rework causes between two or more similar projects.