Detecting unbalanced bidding to achieve economic sustainability using fuzzy logic approach

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Purpose To achieve sustainability for a construction project requires the achievement of economic, environmental and social sustainability at the same time. The economic sustainability of a project should be built into the stipulated cost. The unbalanced bidding always contribute cost overrun for a construction project. The purpose of this paper is to develop a method for identifying unbalanced bidding. Design/methodology/approach The problem of identifying unbalanced bidding is a comprehensive evaluation problem. All line items and bidders in bills of quantities are evaluation factors and evaluation objects, respectively, and the engineer’s estimated prices are considered as the evaluation benchmarks. The weights of these factors are determined through integrating the entropy weight method and the analytic hierarchy model, which consider subjective and objective factors in the weighting process. Findings The proposed model can be used to quantitatively evaluate unbalanced bids. The identification process can be analyzed within a short period, specifically with the aid of Microsoft Excel, reducing delays in awarding contracts. The results show that the model will support owners as they efficiently and effectively identify unbalanced bids in the bid evaluation stage to mitigate the negative consequences of unbalanced bidding. Practical implications A case study is given to verify the feasibility and practicability of the proposed method, which not only assists owners in efficiently and effectively identifying unbalanced bidding, but also promotes the economic sustainability of construction projects. Originality/value The fuzzy comprehensive evaluation method is used to detect unbalanced bidding, allowing owners to be objective as they identify and reduce unbalanced bidding at the procurement stage.