FDRE- MZLA

FACULTY OF POLICY AND DEVELOPMENT STUDIES

DEPARTMENT OF DEVELOPMENT STUDIES (RLDM

Reason For Construction Delay Of

Balderas Bridge In Sululta Administrative
City
Chapter One
1.Introduction
1.1.Background
 Issue of delay in the construction sector is a world wide
problem. Delays occur in many construction projects, either
simple or complex. In construction, delay can be defined as the
extension of time in the completion of project. In short delay
means failure to complete project in targeted time and budgeted
cost as agreed in contract. Construction site activities are only
the second part of the whole construction process. The first part
comprises of all kinds of office work like planning, designing,
estimating, negotiating, purchasing, scheduling, controlling,
accounting, etc. are required to be done carefully in the office
before the work starts on the site to accomplish the objective of
a project within budget and on schedule(I J.PMS,2006 ).
Construction delays are widespread in most projects
around the world. Some delays may happen in the pre
construction phase which is defined as the period
beginning from the initial conception of the project to the
signing of the contract between the owner and the
contractor; however some of them may happen in the
construction phase that is the period when actual
construction is underway. Project schedules are dynamic
and uncertain. Several factors, controllable and
uncontrollable, affect the project schedule and cause
delays. These delays definitely create negative impacts on
project performance. Delay in schedule in the completion
of a construction project is a major problem for contractors
leading to disputes and spoiled relationships between
project participants(Assaf,S,A,2006)
 The challenge is to measure the net impact of construction
delays accurately. In absence of which delay claims
between all parties involved in the construction process
would become serious and lead to litigation. Time for
performance of a project is particularly an important
consideration for the owner and the contractor. Often, the
most troublesome construction disputes involve delays and
failure to complete the work in a timely manner(Rahul S.
(2014). In fact, delays can be caused by several parties
therefore the effects and remedies vary from case to case.
Concurrent delays are two or more delays occurring at the
same time and are always difficult to resolve.
So, in this paper delay occurrences on a
bridge project is given with respect to
the construction of bridge in Sululta
Administrative as a case study. In
Sululta Administrative city up to now
11 bridges have been constructed. but
the two bridges have been not
completed on the contractual time, so
our case study concern on the reason
construction delay of this bridges.
1.2.Statement of the problem
The construction industry is the tool through which a society
achieves its goal of urban and rural development. Delays in
constructions are serious problems which even slow down
the national development. It is one of the sectors that
provides important ingredient for the development of an
economy. It is widely accepted that a project is successful
when it is finished on time. Unfortunately, due to many
reasons, large number of construction projects fails to follow
the planned schedule and hence delayed.
Construction delay is considered to be one of
the recurring problems in the construction
industry and it has an adverse effect on project
success in terms of time, cost and quality. So,
careful study and planning of each and every
activity of a construction project becomes
important in order to minimize delays. This
paper presents the causes of delay occurring
on an ongoing bridge construction project with
respect to construction of bridge in Sululta
Administrative city
1.3.General Objective
To assess the main reasons of construction
delay in construction project
1.4.Specific objective
To know the reason of construction delay
and to address the problem for the client
office.
To analysis of different causes and reasons
found during questionnaire.
1.5.Significance of the study
This study have various significant. From
this, the study would help the organization to
identify and correct the weakness and improve
their strength. In addition to this study, use
other parts those who have the same problem
with this organization. we also get knowledge
about construction delay skill on how to dig out
the problem and give recommendation. Finally
the study would help as a reference for other
individual who want to study on this area.
1.6.Scope of the study
The scope of this case study would be
limited to assess the construction delay road
bridge of Sululta Administrative city which
is found in Oromia region and in Sululta
city . For this study we have taken sample
from 7 sector such as Sululta Administrative
city, Finance and economic development
office, construction office, education office,
health office, water and mining office, and
road office
1.7.Limitations of the study.
 We faced many problem during conducting this case study
such as
 Lack of enough financial support to accomplish the case
study effectively.
 Unwillingness of the respondents to give appropriate
answer to the cause construction delay of road bridges
project.
 Lack of adequate secondary data particularly in relating
with the construction delay of project.
1.8.Organization of the study
The study would have five chapters. The first chapter is
the introduction part; it includes background of the study,
statement of the problem, objective of the study,
significance of the study, scope of the study, and
limitations of the study. The second chapter deals with
review of literature. The third chapter deals with
methodology of the study and Chapter four deals with
analysis and interpretation. Finally, the fifth chapter deals
with summary of findings, conclusion and
recommendation.
 CHAPTER TWO
2. LITERATURE REVIEW
Construction time often serves as a benchmark for
assessing the performance of a project and the efficiency
of the project organization. Timely completion was one
indicator for successful project. Often, the time required to
complete construction of projects is more than specified time
in Contract.That was why in construction projects, delay
could be characterized as the time overwhelm either past
consumption date determined in an agreement or past the
date that the gatherings settled upon for conveyance of a
projects. It is an undertaking slipping over its arranged
timetable and was considered as basic issue in construction
projects. They quite often result in additional expense and
time. Construction project delays also
 result in conflicts and mistrust among concerned parties (designer,
contractor worker, and consultant). (Khattri et al. 2016).
 Lo, Fung and Tung (2006) define delay as the slowing down
of work without stopping construction entirely and that can lead
to time overrun either beyond the contract date or beyond the
date that the parties have agreed upon for the delivery of the
project.It is also a project slipping over its planned schedule
and was considered as common problem in construction projects.
To the owner, delay means loss of revenue through lack of
production facilities and rentable space or a dependence on present
facilities. In some cases, to the contractor, delay means higher
overhead costs because of longer work period, higher material costs
through inflation, and due to labor cost increases. Completing
projects on time is an indicator of efficiency, but the
construction process is subject to many variables and
unpredictable factors, which result from many sources.
 These sources include the performance of parties, resources
availability, environmental conditions, involvement of other
parties, and contractual relations. It rarely happens that a
project is completed within the specified time. The
construction industry is large, volatile, and requires
tremendous capital outlays. Even with today’s advanced
technology, and management understanding of project
management techniques, construction projects continue to
suffer delays and project completion dates still get pushed
back. Stumpf(2000).
 2.1.Review of empirical literature on construction projects delay
 Delays in construction projects are very common in most parts of the world
even with the introduction of modern management techniques. Studies
conducted on the causes of construction project delays in different countries
of the world have been examined.
 A study carried out an investigation into factors causing construction project
delays in Msafiri Atibu Seboru (2015) by Talukhaba (1999) in Kenya,
and Assaf, et al. (1995) studied the causes of delay in large building
construction projects in Saudi Arabia found out that the major causes of
delay were: client’s payment, architect’s instructions, client’s instructions,
unexpected physical features (rockterrain, underground water, conflicts in
work schedules of subcontractors, and slow decision making and executive
bureaucracy in the owners’ organizations. Al-Tabtabai (2002) shared
the same added limited authority among supervision staff. Msafiri
Atibu Seboru (2015) stated that El-Razek, et al.(2008) conducted a
study on causes of delay in building construction projects in Egypt and
found nonutilization of professional construction/contractual management
as additional causes of delay in addition to Talukhaba (1999), Assaf, et
al. (1995), Al-Tabtabai (2002).
 Mansfield, et al. (1994) studied the causes of delay and cost
overruns in construction projects in Nigeria and the results
showed that the most important factors were: financing and
payment for completed works, poor contract management (lack
of experiences on contractor administration),materials shortages,
and improper planning.Memon, et al. (2012) conducted a study
on time and cost performance in construction projects in
Malaysia and Owolabi et al. (2014) in Nigeria revealed that the
most important delay factors were:design and documentation
issues, financial resource management, project management
and contract administration, contractors’ site management, and
lack of information and communication technology and slow
decision making In Ghana, Crimping et al. (2003) carried out
a research on causes of delay and cost overruns in
construction of groundwater projects in developing countries.
According to the researchers indicated 75% of the projects in
Ghana exceeded the original project schedule
CHAPTER THREE
3.Research Methodology
3.1 Description of study area
 The study area, Sululta city administrative , is a city of finfine
surrounding special zone established in 1929. It is located at 27 km
apart from Addis Ababa in the North Western direction.
Locationally 09°/784 latitude and 068 longitudes. The total area
of Sululta town is about 10,424 heater. Topography is characterized
as rugged (rough), and inclined. The town is mainly characterized
by highland’s climate condition. Its annual rainfall is between 800
and 1200 ml. According to the census conducted by Central
Statistical Agency (CSA) in 2009, the total population is 129,843.
 The major economic activities in the city are trade, urban
agriculture, investment such as hotel, construction, factories, flour
and food complex, food oil production, micro and small-scale
enterprises and other informal business activities like street trades.
3.3 Sample And Data Collection Procedures
3.3.1.Sample procedure
Orodho (2009) give representation of all respondents opinions in
the target population and this assists in generalization of
research findings when the study design is descriptive.
Morris(1990) suggests absence of fixed number of percentages
of subjects that determine the size of un adequate sample. To
them, the ideal sample is large enough to serve as an adequate
representation of that population about which the study wishes
to generalize and small enough to be selected economically in
terms of subject availability, expense in terms of time and
money and complexity of data analysis .Israel(1992) indicates
that for a descriptive study, 10 percent of the entire population
will be good representative sample. the study therefore adopted
stratified sampling in obtaining sample size from the sectors of
Sululta Administrative city.
3.3.2.Sample size
From the population of 400 which is the member of project committee sectors in Sululta
Administrative city ,a sample size of 40 was considered as shown in table below.
Table 1: sample taking technique
Stratum Number of 10% number of
employers employers
Sululta Administrative office 80*10/100 8

Finance and economic development 70*10/100 7

office
Construction office 30*10/100 3

Education office 60*10/100 6

Health office 80*10/100 8

Water and mining office 50*10/100 5

Road office 30*10/100 3

Total 40
Chapter Four 
4 . Data Analysis
The activity of project committee and the concerned sectors
have been analyzed for the purpose of study.
The reason construction delay of road bridge in Sululta
administrative city can be analyzed by collecting data from
many sector such as, from Sululta administrative office ,
finance and economic office , construction office, education
office, health office, water and mining office and road office.
In addition we have interviewed the local elders for our case
study. Finally the case study presents and interpretations of
data collected through questionnaire from employees of Sululta
City Administration. To collect the data for the case study 40
questionnaires were distributed and all were collected from
respondents for the study.
10 respondents were asked by using
interview method. The data was
analyzed by using quantitative and
qualitative methods. That means by
using tables for quantitative data and
narration method for qualitative data
analyzing.
Table 2 profile of respondents

Resp Sex Age Educational qualification

onde
nts work
in experience
  M F 18- 24- 30- >36 pre Dipl Degr M.A
23 29 35 high oma ee &ab
er ove 6-
educ
1-5 10 >10
ation
yrs yrs yrs
No 29 11 0 10 21 9 0 7 21 12

8 21 11
% 72.5 27.5 0 25 52.5 22.5 0 17.5 52.5 30

20 52.5 27.5
As it is shown on the above table1 (72.5%) of the respondents were
males whereas ( 27.5%) of them were females. This shown that the
numbers of males is much more than number of females Worker.
As indicated in table 1 age distribution is one of the demographic
characteristics that show the proportion of people by dividing in to
different sections. From the given table 25% of the total respondents
were within age range of 24-29 years, 52.5 % of them within 30-35
years, 22.5% of them within above 36 years.
As it is shown on the above table1 (72.5%) of the respondents were
males whereas ( 27.5%) of them were females. This shown that the
numbers of males is much more than number of females Worker.
As indicated in table 1 age distribution is one of the demographic
characteristics that show the proportion of people by dividing in to
different sections. From the given table 25% of the total respondents
were within age range of 24-29 years, 52.5 % of them within 30-35
years, 22.5% of them within above 36 years.
Table 3 performance of project committees

performance of project committee

  Performance  
How was the
performance
Respondents High Medium Low very low
of the project
committee in
No 6 10 20 4
sululta
administrativ
e city
regarding the
completion of
the project ? % 15 25 50 10
As shown on the above table 3 the
respondents indicate that performance
of the project committee is 15% high,
25% is medium, 50% is low and 10%
is very low respectively .as we
understand from the above table the
activities of project committee in
Sululta Administrative city is low .this
clearly indicate the cause delay of the
road bridge project.
Table 4The evaluation and monitoring system

Evaluation and monitoring

Performance  
 
Total
How the
Respondents High Medium low very low
project
40
committee
and the client No 4 10 20 6
sectors 100
monitor and
evaluate the
project ? % 10 25 50 15
As shown on the above table 4 the
respondents indicate that performance of the
monitoring and their evaluation
activities :- 10% is high, 25% is medium,
50% is low and 15% is very low
respectively. When we analyzed the
monitoring and evaluation activities of
project committee and the client sector in
Sululta Administrative city is weak. for
these reason the Beldaras road bridge
project started in 2011 and have not been
completed up to now.
Table 5 Are the project committee and client sector
effective in case of managing project ?
Are the project
committee and
Number of Respondent %
client sector
effective in case Yes 18 45
of managing No 22 55
project?

Total 40 100
. As we understand on table 5
45% from the total respondent
agreed that the project committee
can perform the project in effective
way but 55% of the respondent from
the total said no, this show that the
project committee and client sector
cannot perform their task in
effective way.
 Chapter Five
5. Conclusion And Recommendation
5.1 Conclusion
 To study reason construction delay of road bridge project in
Sululta Administrative city, we prepared questioner and distributed
for 40 employers of the stuff. Then we have collected all
questioner from respondents and analyzed it by using tables.
when we have seen the opinion of respondents on table 3 the
activities of project committee are, 15% high, 25% medium, 50
% low and 10% very low respectively . this clearly indicate they
have poor performance . When we analyzed on table 4 65% of the
respondent agreed that the delay problem of project in case of low
evaluation and low controlling system . Generally when we
conclude this finding the performance of the project committee and
the client sector of the Sululta administrative city have poor
performance in case of management such as planning, following
up, controlling contractor, to accomplish road bridge on time and
with quality
5.2 Recommendation
 Based on the findings of our case study we recommend
the following points how the project committee, client
sector ,contractor and consultant respectively mitigate
the problem of delay of project construction.
 Before execution of the project the client sectors and
project committee should give more attention for
planning and for visibility study.
 Problem of civil engineering have been clearly observed
on construction project of sululta administrative city. So
the they should solve this problem. .
 Client and contractor should avoid suspension work that lead
for additional time.
 The project committee should give great attention to
environmental degradation. Because around the construction
area there is high gorge and valley that may affect the
residential. For that on the area the physical and biological
structure should be done.
 In case of monitoring and evaluation the activity of project
committee is weak, so they should be essential for them to
solve problem associated with management .
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