THE EFFECT OF VARIATION DUE TO DESIGN CHANGE ON BUILDING PROJECT PERFORMANCE IN ADDIS ABABA DELTA ENGINEERING CONSTRUCTION PLC

Abstract

The construction industry contributes significantly to any nation's economy by creating jobs and wealth. In terms of cost and time, many projects performed very poorly. Variation due to design change is one reason for this low performance. This is due to the fact that project costs, schedules, and time can be affected by design change. Due to internal and external factors, one or more parties initiate the design change, which delays and increases costs in construction projects. Therefore, this research is to identify the effect of variation due to design change on construction project performance in Addis Ababa Delta Engineering Construction Plc. Explanatory quantitative research designs were used to achieve the research objective. Data gathered through a questionnaire the research methodology engaged a questionnaire survey about the effect of variation due to design changes during the building construction, which are distributed to the project managers, client and the Engineers. The purpose of this research is to determine how a design change affects the performance of a construction project in Addis Ababa. A sample of 111 respondents from the client, design consultant, supervision consultant, and contractor sides were also used to test the hypotheses. Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 26 was used to conduct descriptive and inferential statistics on the data. Frequency, mean, and standard deviation were used for descriptive statistics. In order to answer the research objectives, correlation and multiple regression were used for the inferential statistics. The relationships that exist between the variables were examined using correlation analysis; The correlation matrix showed that every independent variable's coefficient of correlation was positive and strongly correlated with the dependent variable. The four independent variables (client-related, design consultant-related, supervision-consultant-related, and contractor-related design change factors) affect construction project performance, as revealed by additional regression analysis in addition to correlation analysis. It was determined that consultant-related factors the major factors affecting project performance. Consultants should give a brief explanation of the design document with the respective professional appointed by the client. And giving awareness about the consequence of design change in the construction phase, and also Consultant’s supervisors should have collective experience about construction project.