The study focused on identifying ways in which the delivery of the building infrastructure projects that are executed by SME contractors can be improved. TQM, which has been widely used in other sectors with great success, has been explored as the tool that can be used to improve the delivery of building projects. The literature review that was conducted focused on the entire spectrum of the project cycle. It first addressed the functioning of the public sector and the legislative mandate of the DPW. Then it addressed the construction industry and SME contractors that are working in the built environment. TQM together with its elements were explored in detail to determine its applicability in terms of the delivery of building projects. The empirical study was undertaken to test the outcomes of the literature review in the context of the built environment. A quantitative research method was adopted for the study which achieved a response rate of 44 percent. Descriptive statistics were computed during the analysis of the data with the mode being used as the main measuring tool. The findings revealed that there was an uneven distribution of human capital in the industry and the consulting firms were the biggest benefactors of this. The study also revealed a high turnover rate in the SME contractors while the public sector has the oldest employees. Architects and construction managers were found to be the least represented profession. There was also a high concentration of role players in the Amathole Region. The recommendations were four fold and the Department of Public Works (DPW) as client body had to take the centre stage in implementing such recommendations. The recommendations are meant to address: the development of technical people to enhance their capacity, the reduction of the high turnover rate of technical people, the uneven distribution of resources, and specifying of the roles and responsibilities of all the people that are involved in building infrastructure projects.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:nmmu/vital:8814 |
| Date | January 2012 |
| Creators | Ntsholo, Vukani Patrick |
| Publisher | Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Faculty of Business and Economic Sciences |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis, Masters, MBA |
| Format | x, 89 leaves, pdf |
| Rights | Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University |
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