Lean Construction Implementation in the Saudi Arabian Construction Industry

Main Article Content

Jamil Ghazi Sarhan
Bo Xia
Sabrina Fawzia
Azharul Karim

Abstract

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) has witnessed a huge increase in construction during the last two decades. However, many projects experienced time delays, cost overruns and the generation of massive amounts of waste. To address these challenges, lean construction has been introduced into the Saudi construction industry; however, it is still in its infancy. This study therefore investigates the current state of lean construction implementation in the construction industry in the KSA. The objectives are to identify: the types of construction waste, level of use of tools that support the implementation of lean construction, stages of application of lean methods, and the benefits of lean construction. To achieve these objectives, a structured questionnaire survey of 282 construction professionals was carried out. After the analysis of the collected data using mean score and Anova test, the following conclusions were made.  In the construction industry in the KSA, waiting is the most common type of waste, while Computer Aided Design (CAD) is the conventional tool supporting the implementation of lean construction. Furthermore, the data suggests that lean construction is most commonly used in the construction stage of projects while customer satisfaction is the main benefit derived from lean construction practices. This study concludes that the level of implementation of lean construction in the KSA construction industry is increasing. The results will help benchmark the current state of lean construction implementation, which will enable the construction industry to identify strategies to implement lean construction in Saudi Arabia in accordance with their needs and project goals, to achieve better productivity.

Article Details

How to Cite
Sarhan, J. G., Xia, B., Fawzia, S., & Karim, A. (2017). Lean Construction Implementation in the Saudi Arabian Construction Industry. Construction Economics and Building, 17(1), 46-69. https://doi.org/10.5130/AJCEB.v17i1.5098
Section
Articles (Peer reviewed)
Author Biographies

Jamil Ghazi Sarhan, Queensland University of Technology

School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment

Science and Engineering Faculty

Queensland University of Technology (QUT), PhD Research

Bo Xia, Queensland University of Technology

Bo (Paul) XIA 夏波Ph.D, Senior Lecturer |

School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment | QUT |

S Block, Level 8, RM S838, |  2 George Street, Brisbane QLD 4001 |

Phone: +61 7 3138 4373 (Office) | Email: paul.xia@qut.edu.au|

Website: http://staff.qut.edu.au/staff/xiap/ 

Publications: http://eprints.qut.edu.au/view/person/Xia,_Bo.html

ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Bo_Xia4/publications

Sabrina Fawzia, Queensland University of Technology

Sabrina Fawzia Ph.D, Lecturer in Civil Engineering

School of Civil Engineering and Built Environment,  Science & Engineering Faculty

Queensland University of Technology, 2 George St, S Block-733, BRISBANE  4000

Tel: 61 7 3138 1012  Fax: 61 7 3138 1170

Email: sabrina.fawzia@qut.edu.au

Azharul Karim, Queensland University of Technology

Dr Azharul Karim
Senior Lecturer

Course Leader: Master of Engineering Management

Mechanical Engineering Discipline
Science and Engineering Faculty
Queensland University of Technology
2 George Street, QLD 4001 AUSTRALIA

Tel (07) 3138 6879  Fax: (07) 3138 1529
Email: azharul.karim@qut.edu.au

Research: https://www.qut.edu.au/research/research-projects/energy-and-drying