STUDY OF ADOPTION OF ICT IN PAKISTAN CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

Abstract

Information and communication Technology (ICT) currently have great effect on the construction industry and the routine it works. The technology is viewed as vital for effective and successful project delivery. Presently, there is an increasing awareness among stakeholders of the industry that, in order to overcome the standing information management and communication insufficiencies in the construction business, more importance should be given to information and communication technology (ICT). Though, several construction organizations today might recognize that greater use of ICT would improve their performance and may well engage the technology to improve some specific processes, ICT usage in most construction firms have often been termed as relatively limited and unsuccessful compared to other sectors in most economies. This situation could probably be true for the Pakistan construction industry. With the need for adequate information concerning the Pakistan Construction industry, this research focuses on reasons which are hindering the adoption of ICT in CI, potential benefits which can/have been perceived through adoption of ICT and to suggest implementation strategies for successful adoption of ICT in Pakistan CI with glimpse on current status of ICT use in Pakistan CI. A survey based on designed questionnaire was used to produce the relevant data from Industry stake holders. In all, one hundred and eighteen respondents completed the questionnaire. The data was studied using MS Excel and SPSS-20. The study revealed that use of computers at workplace are good. Almost all companies have internet access at head offices (93%) and availability of internet at site/project offices although less as compared to head office but still good (70%). CAD, Word Processing and spread sheets are most commonly used applications in CI. The industry also showed interest to increase ICT use their companies in near future particularly in 2 CAD and project management areas. The study revealed 3 out of 10 barriers identified from the literature as important barriers affecting the use of ICT. These barriers are: Continual Need to Upgrade, Inefficient existing IT infrastructure (Low Speed, Low Coverage especially to remote sites) and One or more participant (Client, Consultant, Contractor, Sub- Contractor etc.) of a typical construction project do not adopt ICT in their respective firms. The 3 most potential benefits which can be perceived with ICT use as indicated by study are: Faster access to information, Use of ICT increase the Effective Co-ordination among Project Team members and Ease of retrieval of information. The study also revealed 3 out 8 implementation strategies identified through literature as well as from Industry Survey, important for adoption of ICT: Senior Management should create an environment for adoption of ICT within Organization, Refresher Courses should be conducted by PEC to increase/refresh ICT skills of construction professionals and Staff training on job should be conducted in the use of ICT for work. Although the attitude and interest toward ICT by CI seems promising but barriers identified through this study could be a major issue regarding the adoption of ICT and to get benefit with adoption. The basic ICT related infrastructure exist in CI now it is high time to move towards implementation of more sophisticated applications of ICT like BIM, EDI, EDM, RFID to improve efficiency and to meet international standards. It is expected the findings from the study could be relevant in addressing the situation in the construction industry of Pakistan.