An Investigation into the Applications of Total Quality Management on Government Funded Road Projects in Zambia A Case Study: The Kitwe-Ndola Dual carriageway

Abstract

The construction industry plays a vital role in the economic development of any country. The road sector in Zambia has been taken as the major drive in the effective transportation of goods and services from one area to another within the country and beyond. The general aim of the study was to establish the causes of poor quality road projects, quality shortfalls and schedule overruns in the Zambian road sector on government funded road projects. The research took a case study of the Ndola-Kitwe dual carriageway. This road directly serves a population of three towns and beyond, namely Ndola, Kitwe and Luanshya. The escalations on Costs, Schedule overruns and quality shortfalls have a negative effect on the performance of the road sector in enhancing economic growth of a country. The research was conducted by use of closed ended type of questionnaires. These were delivered and collected by hand by the author himself to and from the respondents. The results from the Ndola-Kitwe dual carriageway confirmed that the project had cost escalations of 7.2% with a schedule overrun of 72.2%. Cost and schedule overruns were seen on other projects investigated. From the findings, the study identified lack of contractor experience, material shortages, project scope changes, poor project planning, high labour costs and insufficient tendering information and site conditions as the major causes of Cost overruns. Further the study identified changes in initial designs, low labour productivity, wrong material estimates, decision making delays and unforeseen ground conditions as the major causes of schedule overruns. On quality shortfalls, the study identified lack of material testing, late consultant engagements, wrong estimates and inadequate specifications as the major causes of quality shortfalls. The study concluded that although there are levels on the usage of Total Quality Management principles on government funded road projects, however there are no formal systems that have been set up to implement the use of Total Quality Management. It was also established that the project team members lack training and education in the management of projects. Appropriate training and education for project personnel should be enhanced couple with supplier involvement. The study also recommended the use of Quality groups in the implementation of Total Quality Management usage on Road construction projects. Keywords: Total Quality Management, Cost, Quality, Schedule and implementation