An Analytical Study on Significant Causes and Effect of Delays in Construction Project

A construction project is successful if it is completed in given timeframe or on time. There are various reasons which lead to failure of the project. Construction delay is one of them. Delay in projects downturns the development in all other related fields. It is well known that most of the construction project in Kerala is exposed by delay. It affects the progress of construction industries in Kerala. Thus, comprehensive study on delays in construction is very important. The aim of this research is to analyze the causes of delays, the effects of delays and methods of minimizing construction delays in Kerala. The objectives of the study were achieved through a valid questionnaire that was obtained from contracting companies, consultants and owners in Trivandrum district and to assess the relative importance of these causes using statistical methods. The causes were categorize in five main group as client related, contractor related, consultant related, project related and external factors depending on their nature and mode of occurrences. Based on the valid response, this study identified the delay causes and analyzed the importance and frequency of delays using the relative importance index. From the analysis, it is clarified that the construction delays in Trivandrum district are mainly due to contractor related issues. Thus delays resulting from several reasons typically leads to time overrun additional expenses, dispute and litigation. This paper presents an analytical study of construction delays in Trivandrum district.