Contributing Factors for Implementation of Total Quality Management in Construction Sector: A System Dynamics Approach

Abstract

Maintaining quality in construction projects is paramount to project success that is achieved through different techniques such as Total Quality Management (TQM). However, the key factors of TQM implementation in the construction industry of developing countries are not well explored. Accordingly, this paper evaluated the causative relationship and intricacies of TQM implementation in the construction sector of developing countries. A total of 28 key factors of TQM were captured through a literature review of data published in the last decade. Thereafter, 12 significant key factors were shortlisted through qualitative and quantitative analyses. Lack of top management commitment, poor customer/client satisfaction, inadequate quality of education regarding TQM, and ineffective organizational quality culture emerged as the most imperative impediments to implementing TQM in the construction sector. A novel methodology of systems thinking (ST) was used to develop a Causal Loop Diagram (CLD) that represented interrelations between the 12 shortlisted factors. The CLD encompassed four reinforcing and two balancing loops. Consequently, the system dynamics (SD) model was developed and simulated over five years. The simulation results of the developed SD model indicated an increase in TQM implementation over the period under the defined system. This exploration work provides a system of TQM implementation in the construction sector. The developed SD model can assist in developing strategic quality policies to improve the overall efficiency and performance of construction projects in developing countries.