Chinese Construction Projects Research Articles

Examining the effectiveness of knowledge governance mechanisms in mobile messaging groups within construction project teams

PurposeMobile messaging groups (MMGs) have been widely adopted in construction practice, yet, little is known about how to foster knowledge sharing (KS) in MMGs, characterized by communication visibility. This study is thus motivated to investigate mechanisms for KS in this context.Design/methodology/approachThe paper employs knowledge governance theory to construct a theoretical model and develop hypotheses. Specifically, psychological safety is identified as a mediator between knowledge governance mechanism (KGM) and KS, and promotion regulatory focus is identified as a moderator between KGM and psychological safety. Data from 208 Chinese construction project team members are collected to test the proposed theoretical model.FindingsThe results suggest that both formal and informal KGM positively affect psychological safety, which in turn improves KS (quantity and quality). Moreover, the mediating role of psychological safety is confirmed, and the moderating role of promotion regulatory focus is validated.Originality/valueThis study explores how to foster KS in MMGs, which are pervasive in today’s digital age. The findings in this study enhance the understanding of KS in digital environments and afford important insights into knowledge management within construction project teams.

Assessing the Mediating Role of E-Techniques in the Relationship Between Information Systems and Carbon Reduction Strategies During the Construction Phase of Chinese Construction Projects

In recent years, information systems have become increasingly popular for supporting sustainable operations, especially in carbon reduction efforts. Due to the need to minimize carbon emissions and adopt green practices, organizations are increasingly using information systems to achieve these aims. By using e-techniques as a mediator and taking into account the moderating effects of project orientation and project complexity, this quantitative study seeks to clarify the connection between information systems and carbon reduction approaches. e-techniques connect information systems to carbon reduction efforts. The results imply that project emphasis and complexity affect information systems and carbon reduction approaches. To test these hypotheses, 470 Chinese construction companies that use information systems to reduce carbon emissions were studied. Structural equation modeling determined variable relationships and mediating and moderating factors. This quantitative investigation shows that information systems help companies minimize carbon emissions. This suggests that information systems are highly effective for increasing sustainability in this context. It also emerged that electronic procedures mediate the interaction between information systems and carbon-reduction activities. Project direction and complexity operate as a moderating element, affecting the relationship between information systems and carbon reduction initiatives. The study explores how project direction and complexity impact carbon emission reduction information system efficacy.

How Does the Alienation of Project Digital Responsibility Form? Perspectives from Fraud Risk Factor Theory and Information Asymmetry Theory

During the digital transformation of construction projects, the significant volume of project data raise a multitude of data responsibility issues. Project stakeholders, often motivated by financial interests and other considerations, frequently engage in data fraud, namely the alienation of project digital responsibility (APDR), which ultimately hinders the benefits released by the digital transformation of projects. However, the causes of APDR are still unclear. This study aims to bridge this knowledge gap by empirically investigating the factors influencing APDR and delineating their pathways. A model outlining the mechanism of APDR formation, rooted in fraud risk factor theory (FRFT) and information asymmetry theory (IAT), is proposed. To collect data from 276 Chinese construction project practitioners, a questionnaire was meticulously designed. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) was subsequently applied to assess the validity of the proposed model. Finally, the proposed model consisting of six variables was examined using structural equation modeling (SEM). The results showed that opportunity (OPP), motivation (MOT), and information asymmetry (INF) had a positive effect on APDR, while exposure probability (EXP), penalty strength (PEN), and ethics (ETH) had a negative effect on APDR. Through revealing the formation mechanism of APDR, the findings are beneficial for understanding why stakeholders adopt APDR at the risk of being penalized. This study aims at deepening the systematic understanding of APDR and enriches the relevant theories on project digital responsibility (PDR). Such knowledge would also contribute to project managers proposing effective interventions to inhibit APDR and promote PDR.

The integration of BIM in the application of green building materials in construction projects

In recent years, with the growing call for sustainable development, green building materials, which are of great meaning for reducing resource and environmental impacts, have attracted more and more attention. However, in China, a country with frequent construction activities and high resource consumption, the application of green building materials in construction projects still faces challenges. Building Information Modelling (BIM) as an emerging technology in the construction industry can increase the adoption rate of green building materials in construction projects. The aim of this study is to identify the barriers encountered in the application of green building materials in Chinese construction projects, and to propose corresponding improvement measures by integrating BIM in the decision making. This study adapted a qualitative research method, using semi-structured interviews as a research tool. A total of 6 respondents (including project managers, architects, engineers, and researchers) from Chinese construction companies and research institutions collected interview data, and used Nvivo software to analyze and summarize. The results of this study show that although the application of green building materials in construction projects in China still faces challenges, including market acceptance and supply chain issues, cost and economic feasibility issues, and lack of relevant technology and knowledge. In addition, the study found that BIM technology made a great contribution in promoting the application of green building materials. Through BIM technology, the whole life cycle information management such as material selection, engineering simulation and performance evaluation of construction projects can be carried out, so as to improve the application of green building materials. By exploring the obstacles to the application of green building materials in China’s construction projects and combining with the promotion of BIM technology, this study puts forward a series of specific suggestions and solutions to foster the application of green building materials. This research has made certain theoretical and practical contributions to foster the application of green building materials for the sustainable development of China's construction industry.

Study on the mechanism of a lean construction safety planning and control system: An empirical analysis in China

Despite the fact that lean construction (LC) has been shown to improve construction safety, little research has been conducted to investigate how LC technologies could be applied to safety management. This study aimed to close the gap by developing a safety planning and control (SPC) process based on LC technologies and evaluating it using structural equation modeling. The process was based on the last planner system (LPS) research framework and consisted of four sub-systems (i.e., the analysis layer, the planning layer, the control layer, and the performance layer). Data was gathered from 300 Chinese construction projects. The findings will serve as a guide for construction stakeholders looking to improve the efficiency of safety management by incorporating some LC technologies into the SPC process. And the four sub-systems work together to create a positive circulation system that aids in the long-term improvement of construction safety management.

How Does Collective Moral Judgment Induce Unethical Pro-Organizational Behaviors in Infrastructure Construction Projects: The Mediating Role of Machiavellianism.

The sustainable development of infrastructure construction projects heavily depends on favorable cooperation of all parties and ethical code of conduct, while Un-ethical pro-organizational behavior (UPB) may undermine the mutual efforts and cause serious consequences. UPB has aroused wide interest of researchers, but what may trigger construction employees to engage in UPB at team-level has not been elucidated completely. With information asymmetry and huge uncertainty, the behaviors of employees in temporary project teams are marked by environmental and personal characters. The study discusses the influences of collective moral judgement focus on self (CMJS) and Machiavellianism on UPB. Through a moderated mediation analysis conducted on a set of survey data from Chinese construction projects, the empirical results of the two-level hierarchical linear model indicate that CMJS positively impacts UPB directly, and meanwhile Machiavellianism acts as a partial mediator in the relationship between CMJS and UPB. The findings also reveal that performance-avoidance goal orientation (PAGO) and motivation to learn (MTL) moderate and strengthen the relationship between Machiavellianism and UPB. The study offers practical suggestions for both project managers and policymakers of construction projects.

Effects of Digital Technology Adoption on Sustainability Performance in Construction Projects: The Mediating Role of Stakeholder Collaboration

Emerging digital technologies such as building information modeling (BIM) and the Internet of Things (IoT) have been widely adopted in construction projects and have attracted great attention from researchers and practitioners in the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry. To better understand the benefits of adopting digital technologies in construction projects from the sustainability perspective, this research investigated the impact of digital technology adoption on sustainability performance and proposed the mediating role of stakeholder collaboration based on organizational information processing theory (OIPT). Survey data were collected from managers and members of Chinese construction projects, and the partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) method was used to test the hypothesized relationships. The results show that digital technology adoption has direct effects on economic, environmental, and social performance and that stakeholder collaboration can directly influence only economic and environmental performance. Additionally, stakeholder collaboration partially mediates the relationship between digital technology adoption and economic and environmental performance. These findings enrich the current research on digital transformation and project sustainability management and provide managerial implications for how to realize the benefits of digital technology adoption in the AEC industry.

Nonspatial Proximity and Project Team Resilience: The Role of Knowledge Sharing and Team Cohesion

Project teams often work in a turbulent and uncertain environment, which tends to bring various dilemmas to them over the projects’ duration. Resilience makes it possible for project teams to minimize, manage, and mend the damage caused by adversities. The research on project team resilience is emerging, but not fully developed. Many inputs of project team resilience including team composition have attracted less or even no attention. We explored the influence of team composition on project team resilience from the perspective of proximity and discussed the role of knowledge sharing and team cohesion in their relationship. An analysis of 256 responses from Chinese construction project teams shows that (a) cognitive proximity has a U-shaped effect on project team resilience, knowledge sharing, and team cohesion; (b) value and social proximity positively affect project team resilience, knowledge sharing, and team cohesion; (c) knowledge sharing and team cohesion have a positive influence on project team resilience and mediate the relationship between cognitive, value, social proximity, and project team resilience. This study enriches the empirical literature on team resilience, broadens the boundary of project management, team resilience, proximity, and conservation of resources theory, and provides practical suggestions and future direction.

Project-Based Organizations’ Pursuit of Production Efficiency and Legitimate Power: An Institutional Perspective

Drawing on institutional theory, this article aims to investigate how owners’ project-based organizations (PBOs) can promote production efficiency and legitimate power under the influence of legal enforceability. Analyzing a sample of Chinese construction projects, we find that PBOs can achieve this goal by designing more complex contracts when legal enforceability increases. The PBOs’ expertise reduces the effect of legal enforceability on contracts and alleviates their dependence on contracts when pursuing efficiency. These results can guide PBOs to design contracts according to their expertise and the legal environment to promote production efficiency and legitimate power.

Opportunities and Challenges for Construction Health and Safety Technologies under the COVID-19 Pandemic in Chinese Construction Projects.

The Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in significant delays and cost overrun in construction projects. The implementation of health and safety (H&S) technologies is one of the most important strategies to alleviate the adverse impacts of COVID-19 on the construction industry and help the industry adapt to the new normal. This study aims to evaluate the adoption of H&S technologies for pandemic management in the construction sector under the COVID-19 pandemic. Semi-structured interviews with eighteen practitioners engaged from construction companies and technology firms were conducted to collect their views on the driving forces and issues of the adoption of H&S technologies for pandemic management in Chinese construction projects. The results reveal that the major H&S technologies used included the health quick response (QR) code system, artificial intelligence (AI)-powered fever monitoring, and site access control system. These technologies were reported to be effective in preventing the spread of the pandemic in workplaces. The findings of the study amplify that the pandemic may serve as an acceleration of the adoption of H&S technologies in the construction sector. Other technologies, such as building information modeling, drones, AI-based safety monitoring, and robotics, however, were seldom used in the studied projects. The interviewees addressed several problems regarding the implementation of these technologies. High costs of technologies, a lack of client support, and disruptions to the normal work process were the main hurdles of the adoption of these technologies. The results indicated that the external influence factor—the COVID-19 pandemic—could considerably drive the use of H&S technologies, whereas the internal influence factors—cost and compatibility of technology—might be the major barriers to technology adoption. To encourage the wider use of H&S technologies in construction, the government is recommended to support the technology transformation by granting financial subsidies for costs involved in innovation adoption. Project owners may consider investing substantially in H&S technologies that can strengthen their resilient and innovative ability to adapt to the post-COVID-19 landscape. The present results will be useful to industry stakeholders and researchers interested in developing H&S technologies for combating the COVID-19 pandemic and future crises.

An investigation of safety climate in Chinese major construction projects

Safety performance in the Chinese construction projects remains poor in comparison to other developed countries. While a considerable body of research has accumulated to explain why accident and incident rates remain high in China, research into safety climate in Chinese major construction projects remains scant. To address this gap in knowledge, a survey of 189 construction professionals across five major construction projects in China was undertaken using a validated safety climate framework. Follow-up interviews were also conducted with nine senior construction safety professionals to verify the survey analysis results. The findings indicate that safety climate in major construction projects in China is perceived to be strong, and management commitment appears to be the underlying factor to promote this positive result. Safety rules and procedures is a dimension that requires attention because of their complexity and competing interests during their implementation. All the dimensions of the safety climate are strongly interrelated, indicating that multidimensional and holistic strategies should be employed to improve safety climate in major construction projects. This research enriches the understanding about the characteristics of safety climate in Chinese major construction projects and the effective measures which can be taken to further enhance the safety performance on these projects.

Enforcement against contract violation in Chinese construction projects: impacts of trust and perceived intentionality

Violations happen frequently in construction projects due to opportunistic intentions and/or the lack of awareness of obligations and/or honest attempts to react to unforeseen circumstances. Dealing with contract violations plays an important role in managing projects. The aim of the research is to investigate the impact of trust, analyzed in terms of the goodwill-based and competence-based trust, on both contract and social enforcement after a contract violation. A questionnaire survey, partially based on semi-structured interviews, was used for data collection. All the data is from the Chinese construction industry since it provides a fertile context to explore the research questions. The results show that: 1) reputation is used as social enforcement in practice and the severity of it is reflected by the scope of the disclosure, 2) the two dimensions of trust have opposite influences on the severity of contract and social enforcement via different mediating effects of perceived intentionality. Specifically, goodwill-based trust reduces the severity of enforcement via decreasing perceived intentionality, while competence-based trust increases the severity of enforcement by increasing perceived intentionality. A comprehensive and nuanced understanding for managing contract violation is generated in this research, which will help project managers to manage the contract violation and the interfirm relationships more effectively.

China connecting Europe?

The significance of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) for Europe is increasing. The diplomatic initiative “16 + 1,” comprising China and 16 Central, East and Southeast European economies (CESEE), expanded to a “17 + 1” format in April 2019, when Greece officially joined the cooperation forum. This expansion revived interest in Chinese activities aimed at better physical and digital connectivity in Europe and their effects. The article descriptively shows a geographical division of Chinese infrastructure development activities in Europe: the “17 + 1” region is targeted more intensively by Chinese construction projects. Moreover, roughly 90% of all construction contracts with the “17 + 1” region are attributable to connectivity sectors, while Chinese activities in other European regions are more diversified. In Europe, the Western Balkans are expected to economically benefit the most from the BRI, as they show particularly high deficiencies in infrastructure, and so far, have limited access to EU grants. Economic effects of infrastructure projects, however, trickle through European production and supply chains, affecting a larger number of countries than information on projects would suggest. EU initiatives presented since 2018 may help to increase complementarity between Chinese and European infrastructure development plans and reduce associated risks, such as unsustainable debt or new trade barriers arising from increased competition for Chinese investments. The BRI is about to change physical and digital connectivity within Europe, while the EU has yet to become an active player engaging in the initiative, in order to enable improved connectivity in Europe to drive economic convergence and not political divergence.

Combined strategy of trust repair in construction project organizations: an exploratory study in Chinese management scenario

PurposeThis study aims to explore the combined strategies leading to successful repair of two types of trust in Chinese construction projects and provide an effective guidance and control trust repair in construction projects. During the research period, the author interviewed 150 managers from 50 Chinese construction projects and collected details of 125 violations. The research examines the effect of combined strategy of trust repair in Chinese management scenario.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopted a mixed, quantitative, qualitative and exploratory approach. The author first extracted six strategies, namely, apology, denial, penance, communication, promise and compensation, from the literature review and generalization. Then, the author conducted an interview with 150 managers from 50 China construction projects. And the author analyzed the data through qualitative comparative analysis (QCA).FindingsWhen competence-based trust is broken, violators should adopt communication and promise, demonstrate their competence and qualification, and change the attributions of competence from the trustor. When integrity-based trust is broken, violators should apologize, actively admit the mistake, show a positive attitude and seek the forgiveness from the trustor. After reconstructing trustors' perceptions of competence or integrity, violators should also make a promise to trustors for the future. The result of this research not only illustrates the sufficiency and necessity of a single strategy for trust repair but also explores the combination of trust repair strategies that rebuild the trust.Research limitations/implicationsThis study is limited to 50 construction projects in the Chinese construction context, so conclusions are limited in application. Data used in this research did not provide an in-depth analysis of trust repair failures. Thus, additional research is needed to explore why trust was not repaired. The study is also limited to examining the Chinese construction project organizations only, and future studies should incorporate organizations in other nations and regions.Practical implicationsCompared with using a single strategy, a combined strategy provides a contribution to the future practice of repair broken relationship between construction project organizations. This research helps to organize decisions and benefits managers, from Chinese owners and contractors, in choosing which of these strategies repair trust. The author also provides a specific combination of strategies to repair relationships for international companies that have conflicts with Chinese construction companies.Originality/valueThis research is among the early studies in China that preliminary examines the combined strategy of trust repair between Chinese owners and contractors by using causal attribution theory and QCA. This study makes a valuable contribution toward combined strategy in construction project and the knowledge system of trust repair. Future studies could build on the findings from the current study to develop a cross-cultural research on trust repair.

Linking work–family conflict and burnout from the emotional resource perspective for construction professionals

PurposeFollowing the conservation of resources theory and job demands–resources model, this study aims to explore the relationship between work interference with family (WIF) and emotional exhaustion and the boundary condition for construction professionals.Design/methodology/approachThis study collected 319 valid samples from Chinese construction projects and examined the established integrative moderated mediation model using regression analysis and bootstrapping.FindingsThe results indicated that WIF was positively related to emotional exhaustion. The surface acting strategy mediated the relationship between WIF and emotional exhaustion. Emotional intelligence alleviated the indirect effect of WIF on emotional exhaustion via surface acting.Originality/valueThese findings unveil the resource depletion process of work–family conflict in the construction project context, enrich the emotional intelligence literature to demonstrate the buffer function on the negative impact of emotional resource depletion and address the implications for the construction labour workforce.

South American interoceanic transport corridors. An instrument of intra-regional integration and Chinese economic influence

Since the XXI century the majority of South American countries call to create large integration transport corridors that provide interconnections between different parts of the region. The authors studied the projects of multimodal transport corridors implemented by the South American organization IIRSA (Initiative for the Integration of the Regional Infrastructure of South America), the purpose of which is the connection of the coasts of two oceans: the Atlantic and the Pacific. Analyzing the situation related to the latest Chinese investment and construction projects in South America within the framework of The Belt and Road Initiative, the authors question the feasibility and prospects the effectiveness of IIRSA's priority megaprojects. According to the developers, such initiatives, embodying infrastructure integration in the region, should contribute not only to the economic growth of the participating countries, but also to greater access to the global market for finance and services. The authors consider, although, that it is likely that this initiative risks being transformed into a tool for realizing China's economic and political interests.

Bidder Network Community Division and Collusion Suspicion Analysis in Chinese Construction Projects

Bidder collusion seriously undermines the fair competition of the construction project market, and effective identification of collusion behaviors is of vital importance to the implementation of proactive regulation and supervision. In this paper, the data of construction project bidders from 2011 to 2018 are selected in Shaanxi Province, China, and a bidder network of construction projects is constructed. The collusion suspicion of bidders is analyzed from the macro-, meso-, and microlevels. The results show that the bidder network has features as small world at macrolevels, and it is easy for bidders to involve in collusion. The network community formed by construction, supervision, and survey and design bidding enterprises is analyzed at the mesolevel, and the collusion of supervision enterprises is found to have the highest suspicion At the microlevel, the characteristic value judgment and community division are adopted to analyze the collusion suspicion, which is divided into high, medium, and low according to the possibility. Through a comparison with the actual data, it is found that the method proposed in this paper can effectively identify the collusion behavior of construction project bidders. This paper proposes red, yellow, and green warning mechanism and formulates hierarchical accurate management preparedness, which can provide some suggestions to help prevent bidders from colluding.

Evaluate the UK Construction Project Impact and Response Strategies during the Epidemic through Malaysia and China

2020 is a special year, this year the world’s economy has become extremely unstable because of the arrival of COVID-19. Idiosyncratic shocks have hit the global economy. The stock market has suspended, companies have closed, unemployment has soared, every industry has faced the biggest crisis since the Second World War. The British construction industry is certainly no exception. This time it will be the victim of this epidemic and the financial crisis. Compared with the European and American countries, the impact of the epidemic in Asia (Malaysia and China) is relatively light. The development of the epidemic situation in these countries has been controlled relatively effectively and strictly controlled. They are inextricably linked. However, the impact of construction projects in any area under the epidemic, the countermeasures adopted by the government, the epidemic prevention measures adopted by the company and the risk prevention strategy are very different. Therefore, under different circumstances, whether it is from the construction industry managers themselves or government policymakers, it is essential to apply correct and valid management measures to face the projects under construction under the epidemic actively. Simultaneously, collect statistics from questionnaire surveys of three countries in the region, then get an experimental result. Besides, different countries have different policies and forms of epidemic development. So, this research will summarize the corresponding policies and coping strategies of the project. It based on statistics of Malaysia and Chinese construction Projects, surveys for five projects to make comparisons than do statistics to the survey result.

Unpacking the “Black Box”: Understanding the Effect of Social Network Characteristics on Safety Behaviors of Construction Workers

How to improve the safety behaviors of construction workers has dogged the realm of construction project management. Previous studies mainly focused on the individual and/or organizational factors shaping safety behaviors, while there is a dearth of research focusing on the effect of individual-organizational nexus (i.e., the network embeddedness of individuals within the organization). Thus, this study employs social network analysis (SNA) and multivariable regression analyses to explore the relationship between the characteristics of social networks of construction workers (i.e., degree, closeness, and betweenness centralities) and their safety behaviors (i.e., safety participation and safety compliance), considering the mediating role of safety communication. The primary data were collected from ten Chinese construction projects. The results include the following three aspects. First, degree centrality, closeness centrality, and betweenness centrality all exert significant positive effects on safety participation. Closeness centrality yields a positive effect on safety compliance in formal networks. Degree centrality has a positive effect on both safety compliance and safety participation, whereas the other two centrality characteristics exhibit no significant effect in informal networks. Second, in formal networks, safety communication plays a partial mediation role between closeness centrality and safety compliance and a full mediation role between degree and closeness centralities and safety participation. Third, in informal networks, safety communication plays a full mediation role between degree centrality and safety compliance and a partial mediation role between degree centrality and safety participation. This study provides new insights for construction project management in achieving improved safety performance via shaping the social network characteristics.

Implementing lean construction techniques and management methods in Chinese projects: A case study in Suzhou, China

Aimed at maximizing project value while reducing waste and cost, the lean construction (LC) approach was formally and successfully introduced to the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry in 1993. Although LC has rapidly developed since that time, it was not applied to a Chinese construction project until 2005. However, due to insufficient knowledge and poor execution, this first attempt at lean construction in China was inadequate. The aim of this study was therefore to discover if the Chinese construction industry has since discovered how to use lean practices to maximize project value, shorten the project schedule, improve project quality, and reduce waste. This was achieved by conducting a case study of a LC project in Suzhou, China. The case study revealed that implementation of lean practices during the project, including Last Planner System (LPS), Kanban system, Just-In-Time (JIT), prefabrication, Internet of Things (IoT), quality and safety management, and continuous improvement, all contributed to the improvement of project performance. To supplement the case study and to provide insights on the differences between Chinese and international LC, interviews with project stakeholders and a questionnaire survey of global lean experts were conducted. Results indicated that interviewees and survey respondents both held the view that project waiting times and defects can be greatly reduced through the implementation of LC, and that improvement of construction workflow along with project productivity and quality were the two most valuable benefits of using lean practices; there was also a consensus that lack of trust and the abilities of stakeholders are the biggest challenges.