Factors Affecting Production Rate of Masonry Work in Building Projects

Abstract

Past studies of masonry-labor productivity fail to accurately identify the factors that most affect masonry productivity and to quantify the factors effect. Understanding the factors affecting masonry-labor productivity would help designers to design masonry structures that could be constructed more efficiently and would enable constructors to better estimate, plan, schedule and manage masonry projects.

In this research, the authors were able to identify the factors that most affect masonry work in building projects they used questionnaire, interviews, site visits, consultants, general contractor, subcontractor and owner representative in different projects in Egypt.

Evaluating the influencing factors, the interviewee sees that the level of site management, adherence to the project schedule, the speed of response to work requirement, the rate of meetings to follow up on work progress, the efficiency of engineers, theskill of supervisors, the skill of workers, the number of equipment, whether the provision of tools is good enough, are the main factors that affect masonry work productivity.

The study samples from our interviews, helped the authors conclude that external factors such as weather conditions, prices, and regulatory requirements have a significant impact on the productivity of construction work in construction projects, the administrative factors such as the exchange of abstracts, additional working hour, poor management of work on the site, lack of efficiency, expertise, all have a significant impact on the progress of work on the productivity of masonry work in theproject.

The factors that have the greatest impact on increasing the rates of productivity of masonry work in projects in Egypt are whether the salaries are appropriate with the nature of the work and then the technical expertise, the provision of full health car, then skilled labor, protection and construction safety and then social conditions.