Impact of Change’s Timing on Labor Productivity

Abstract

There are many types of construction changes and each type can have an effect on labor productivity. To a certain extent though the specific type of change is not as important as the mere presence of the change and, as analyzed in this paper, the timing of that change. The research reported in this paper reaffirms that project change is disruptive and detrimental to labor productivity. Data from 162 construction projects were statistically analyzed and a series of three curves are presented in this paper, representing the impact that change has on the labor productivity for early, normal, and late timing situations. The projects are a representative sample of the industry, involving a wide range of sizes, different delivery systems, and industry sectors. Late change is more disruptive of project productivity than early change, all other things being equal. The implications and benefits of this research are clear: if changes are necessary, they should be recognized and incorporated as early as possible. Practitioners can use these data and curves for either forward pricing or retrospective pricing of changes. Other researchers can use these findings to test their own findings and to explore timing issues in further detail.