TITLE:
Productivity and Efficiency in the Development of the Swedish Construction Sector
AUTHORS:
Anne Landin, Mats Oberg
KEYWORDS:
Productivity, Efficiency, Measurement, Innovation Models, Construction
JOURNAL NAME:
American Journal of Industrial and Business Management,
Vol.4 No.6,
June
26,
2014
ABSTRACT: The measurement of productivity
and efficiency of activities in the Swedish construction sector is examined.
Understanding past and present levels of productivity is necessary to steer
emerging and future developments aimed at increasing efficiency of
construction. The absence of purposeful measurement methods and tools for
determining current and targeted levels of productivity creates confusion for
clients, designers, constructors and end-users, who are unable to make confident
forecasts of costs and revenues or benefits over project life cycles. The
findings of an investigation using panels of expert practitioners guided by
senior researchers revealed shortcomings in the understanding of factors of driving
productivity as well as uncertainty over where improvements might be achieved.
The significance of the findings is that methods and tools must be calibrated
to current and emerging construction practices and their technical bases rather
than continuing with measurements that were conceived for earlier processes and
products. The paper concludes with an outline of further research aimed at
improving self-learning in regard to both process and product as part of a
broad response to raising efficiency through innovation.