Factors Influencing Cost Performance of Construction Projects in Kaduna State

Abstract

The prime objective of every client is to accomplish the project within the agreed budget and time. The construction industry has been  described as one of the most fragmented, multifaceted, time and material-driven industry. The industry is always faced with challenges  such as low quality, low productivity, delay, cost overrun, etc. The issue of cost does have obvious implications for the key stakeholders in  particular, and the industry in general. Therefore, this study aimed at exploring those factors that influence cost performance of the  construction projects in Kaduna State with a view of establishing the bases for professionals to note when carrying out cost management  of any project. The objective of this study is to establish the main factors influencing cost in the Kaduna state construction projects. This  study was carried out in Kaduna state, Nigeria. The Methodology used was quantitative research approach. With the aid of a  questionnaire survey, data was collected using Simple random sampling. The target population of this study was 827 while the sample  size used was 270. 198 questionnaires were filled and returned. Exploratory factor analysis was used to analyse the data so as to identify factors capable of being understood. Out of which seven underlying factors were identified. The seven-component solution explained a  total of 75.782% of the variance explained with component 1 contributing 19.250%, component 2 contributing 14.585%, component 3  contributing 11.737%, component 4 contributing 10.744%, component 5 contributing 7.813%, component 6 contributing 6.872% and  component 7 contributing 4.781% establishing the factors influencing cost performance in the Kaduna state construction projects. They  are: Project Management Factor, Expertise and Market Forces Factors, Contract Management Factors, Contractual and Socioeconomic  Factors, Government Policies and External Factors, Procedural and Standards factor and, Experience and Service Cost Factor. Hence,  concluded that much focus should be placed on these factors in order to reduce the cost of construction project, enhance construction  cost performance for the client and generate confidence within the construction industry for professionals. The study recommended that  the clients, consultants and contractors should undertake the execution of construction works with deliberate and due diligence towards minimizing these factors influence on the cost of construction project as identified from the study.