An Investigation into the Factors that Influence Project Control Process in the Implementation of Construction Projects in Kenya
Cyrus Babu Ong`ondo1, Githae Wanyona2, Abednego Gwaya3
1Cyrus Babu Ong`ondo, Student: M.Sc. Construction Project Management, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture & Technology (JKUAT), Kenya.
2Githae Wanyona, B.A BLDING ECONS (U.O.N), M. Engineering (Kyoto University, Japan), PHD (UCT), RSA, South Africa.
3Abednego Gwaya, B.A (Bldg. Econ.), U. O.N, M.Sc. Civil Eng. Makerere, Ph.D (Const. Eng. & Mngt). JKUAT, Kenya.
Manuscript received on August 15, 2015. | Revised Manuscript received on August 27, 2015. | Manuscript published on September 05, 2015. | PP: 56-63 | Volume-5 Issue-4, September 2015 . | Retrieval Number: D2692095415 /2015©BEIESP
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©The Authors. Published By: Blue Eyes Intelligence Engineering and Sciences Publication (BEIESP). This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Abstract: The aim of project control process is to ensure projects are delivered on-time, within-budget, desired quality amongst other performance measures (Jackson, 2004). In the construction industry of Kenya, many technological developments have occurred just like other developing countries leading to emergency of project control techniques to aid on the effectiveness of the control process, they include Gantt, Bar charts, Program evaluation and review techniques (PERT) and critical path method (CPM).In addition, many software packages have also been developed to support these techniques. Further, the Government of Kenya (GoK) uses the Building organization and operations manual (BOOM) as an official document to guide implementation of projects (Munano, 2012). Despite the wide use of these control methods and techniques, many projects still fail during implementation. Pointing to a potential gap on what influences the effectiveness of the control process in management of construction projects. This study therefore sought to investigate factors influencing project control process in an effort to enhance effectiveness in project controls. This cross-sectional research adopted a mixed-method design consisting of analysis of a questionnaire survey administered to active 67No. (NCA1, NCA2, NCA3 and NCA4) contractors selected by way of stratified random sampling. A similar approach was also used to select 53No.Consultants with a response rate of 78% and 81% respectively. Data analysis techniques employed include descriptive statistics and thematic analysis. The study established thirty six (36No.) factors that influence project control process. These factors were clustered into seven (7No.) groups. They include; Pre-construction planning (RII=0.786), Project communication (RII=0.801), Commitment to project (RII=0.763), Project administration (RII=0.817) and factors related to Monitoring & Evaluation (RII=0.785).It’s recommended that project managers should enhance their pre-construction planning strategies and establish a good enabling environment for the execution of construction projects by constituting a competent project team, clearly defining the performance benchmarks, outlining the project scope, establish a sound communication plan for the project and receive commitment from all the project participants.
Keywords: Project control, construction industry, Project control factors, Kenya.