Quantifying the Impact of Work Environment Factors on the Variability of Labour Productivity in Wall Plastering
Main Article Content
Abstract
Variability in labour productivity is a performance inhibitor and a determinant of effective and ineffective projects. It has hamperedthe intercomparison of construction projects and the accurate forecasting of project duration and cost. This study chose wall plastering activities as a case study. This study aims to quantify the impact of work environment factors on the variability of labour productivity. Data were collected using direct site observations and structured questionnaires. The results revealed that “Waiting for materials” (62.4%), “Being on the job but not working” (52.6%) and “Work area congestion” (52.5%) all had negative effects on labour productivity variance. Other negative factors include “Rework” (51.7%), “Waiting for tools/equipment” (51.1%), “Waiting for information” (47.2%) and “Weather changes”. The overall average daily productivity was 1.268 whr/m2 , baseline productivity = 0.993 whr/m2 and variation in daily productivity = 22.08%; where whr refers to work hours. The findings identified significant work environment factors and quantified their impacts on labour productivity variability in plastering activity. The results indicate that work environment factors during work in progress significantly impact the variability of labour productivity in plastering work and ample consideration should be given to its effects.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
References
Abdel-Razek, R.H., Elshakour, M.H.A. and Abdel-Hamid, M. (2007). Labor productivity: Benchmarking and variability in Egyptian projects. International Journal of Project Management, 25(2): 189–197. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijproman.2006.06.001
Agbo, A.E. (2014). Performance evaluation of labour output of indigenous construction firms in North-Central Nigeria. Civil and Environmental Research, 6(7): 116–121.
Agbo, A.E. and Izam, Y.D. (2019) Impact of work environment factors on labour productivity of masons in Abuja-Nigeria. Environmental Technology and Science Journal, 10(1): 95–103.
Ali, A.S., Smith, A. and Choon, C.H. (2010). Contractors’ perception of factors contributing to project delay: case studies of commercial projects in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Journal of Design and Built Environment, 7(1): 43–57.
Bernold, L.E. and Lee, T.S. (2010). Experimental research in construction. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 136(1): 26–35. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000085
Chan, P.W. and Kaka, A. (2010). Construction productivity measurement: A comparison of two cases. In F. Khosrowshahi (Ed.), 20th Annual ARCOM Conference, 1–3 September 2004, Heriot Watt University. Vol. 1. Edinburgh: Association of Researchers in Construction Management (ARCOM), 3–12. Available at: http://www.docstol.com/docs/68952764/constructionproductivity-technology [Accessed on 27 June 2016].
El-Rayes, K. and Moselhi, O. (2001). Impact of rainfall on the productivity of highway construction. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 127(2), 125–131. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2001)127:2(125)
Enshassi, A., Mohammed, S., Mayer, P. and Abed, K. (2007). Benchmarking masonry labour productivity. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 56(4): 358–368. https://doi.org/10.1108/17410400710745342
Faridi, A.S. and El-Sayegh, S.M. (2006). Significant factors causing delay in the UAE construction industry. Construction Management and Economics, 24(11): 1167–1176. https://doi.org/10.1080/01446190600827033
Frimpong, Y., Oluwoye, J. and Crawford, L. (2003). Causes of delay and cost overruns in construction of groundwater projects in a developing countries: Ghana as a case study. International Journal of Project Management, 21(5): 321–326. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0263-7863(02)00055-8
Gerek, I.H., Erdis, E., Mistikoglu, G. and Usmen, M.A. (2016). Evaluation of plastering crew performance in building projects using data envelopment analysis. Technological and Economic Development of Economy, 22(6): 926– 940. https://doi.org/10.3846/20294913.2014.909903
Goodrum, P.M., Zhai, D. and Yasin, F.M. (2009). Relationship between changes in material, Technology, and construction productivity. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 4: 278–287.
Gopal, T.S.R. and Murali, K. (2015). A critical review on factors influencing labour productivity in construction. IOSR Journal of Mechanical and Civil Engineering, 12(5): 47–51. https://doi.org/10.9790/1684-12544751
Hanna, A.S., Chang, C.K., Lackney, J.A. and Sullivan, K.T. (2007). Impact of overmanning on mechanical and sheet metal labor productivity. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 133(1): 22–28. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2007)133:1(22)
Hanna, A.S., Taylor, C.S. and Sullivan, K.T. (2005). Impact of extended overtime on construction labour productivity. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 131(6): 734–739.
Hegab, M.Y. and Smith, G.R. (2007). Delay time analysis in microtunneling projects. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 133(2): 191– 195. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2007)133:2(191)
Idiake, E.J. (2014). Relationships between Labour performance and variability in blockwork workflow and labour productivity. Civil and Environmental Research, 6(2): 43–53.
Jakas, A.M. and Bita, C.G. (2012). Factors affecting construction labour in Kuwait. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 138(7): 811–820. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)CO.1943-7862.0000501
Makulsawatudom, A., Emsely, M. and Sinthawanarong, K. (2004). Critical factors influencing construction productivity in Thailand. The Journal of KMITNB, 14(3): 1–6.
Mohamed, S. and Srinavin, K. (2005). Forecasting labor productivity changes in construction using the PMV index. International Journal of Industrial Ergonomics, 35(4): 345–351. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ergon.2004.09.008
Mohammed, M. and Mosehi, O. (2005). Forecasting labour productivity changes in construction using PMV index. International Journal of Industrial Economics, 6(35): 345–351.
Noor, I. (1992). A study of the variability of labour productivity in building trades. PhD diss. University of Dundee.
Odesola, I.A., Okolie, K.C. and Nnametu, J.N. (2015). A comparative evaluation of labour productivity of wall plastering activity using work-study. PM World Journal, 4(5): 1–10.
Ofori-Kuragu, J.K., Baiden, B.K. and Edum-Fotwe, F.T. (2010). Benchmarking UK construction firms value added and productivity performance. Paper presented at The Construction, Building and Real Estate Research Conference of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Dauphine Université, Paris, September.
Olomolaiye, P.O., Wahab, K.A. and Price, A.D.F. (1989). Problems influencing craftsmen productivity in Nigeria. Journal of Construction Management and Economics, 5: 301–313.
Rao, B.P. and Sudhanva, N. (2017). Micro and macro-level analysis of labor productivity. International Journal of Civil Engineering and Technology, 8(8): 500–507.
Russel, R. and Taylor, B.W. (2009). Work measurement: Using simulation. A case of Gaza Beach embankment protection project. Construction Innovation, 7(2):117–186.
Shashank, K., Hazra, S. and Nathpal, K. (2014). Analysis of key factors affecting variability of labour productivity in construction project. International Journal of Emerging Technology and Engineering, 5: 152–160.
Song, L. and AbouRizk, S.M. (2008). Measuring and modeling labor productivity using historical data.Journal of Construction Engineering and Management,134(10): 786–794. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2008)134:10(786)
Swapnil, K. and Biswas, P.H. (2015). Improving labour productivity on building construction projects. International Journal of Engineering Sciences and Research Technology, 4(6): 828–834.
Sweis, R.J., Sweis, G.J., Hammond, A.A. and Rumman, M.A. (2009). Modelling variability of labour productivity in masonry construction. Jordan Journal of Civil Engineering, 3(3): 197–212.
Talhouni, B.T. (1990). Measurement and analysis of construction labour productivity. PhD diss. University of Dundee.
Thomas, A.V. and Sudhakumar, J. (2013). Labour productivity variability among labour force: A case study. The International Journal of Engineering and Science, 2(5): 57–65.
Thomas, H.R. and Horman, M.J. (2006). Fundamental principles of workforce management. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 132(1): 97–104. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2006)132:1(97)
Thomas, H.R., Horman, M.J., De Souza, U.E.L. and Zav?ski, I. (2002). Reducing variability to improve performance as a lean construction principle. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 128(2): 144–154. https://doi.org/10.1061/(ASCE)0733-9364(2002)128:2(144)
Udegbe, M.I. (2005). Labour force output on plastering activities in Edo State. The professional builders. Journal of the Nigerian Institute of Builders, 1(7): 34–41.
Vaishant, G. and Kansal, R. (2016). Improvement of construction labour productivity in Chambal Region. International Journal of Research in Engineering and Technology, 3(10): 34–37. https://doi.org/10.15623/IJRET.2014.0310006