Title

TQM in the construction industry in Hong Kong : A supply chain management perspective

Document Type

Paper Series

Publication Date

11-1-1997

No.

014-978

Abstract

TQM is increasingly being adopted by construction companies as initiatives to solve quality problems in the construction industry and to meet the needs of the final customer. However, TQM should incorporate the integrated quality management activities of members in the supply chain. This supply chain context is especially salient in the qua1ity assurance of construction projects as a general contractor often out-sources most of the construction work to other members in the supply chain i.e. its suppliers and subcontractors. Therefore, this paper aims to delineate the supply chain management issues in total quality for construction projects. Through the use of an in-depth case study on the TQM system of a leading construction company in Hong Kong, the strategy, structure and tasks for managing supplier/subcontractor relationships are examined. The study concludes with identification of some supply chain management issues in the construction industry, as well as future research topics in integrating supply chain management with total quality management.

Comments

HKIBS Working Paper Series 014-978