The increasing complexity of a building, the need to reduce design and construction period and the need for better financial management would be the things that are most concern the client. Various types of procurement systems were implemented for various types of project. They were developed to help the client to complete their construction project within time, cost and to the required quality. Design and build procurement contracts have been adopted by a large-scale and expensive public work tenders over the past twenty years. Design and build is often said as a rapid means of construction because of the opportunity for overlap between the design and construction phase. In addition, by using design and build procurement has put a lot of pressure to the contractors by the clients as they want to develop efficient designs to their requirement in tight time scales. This study focuses on the effectiveness implementation of this procurement from time, cost and quality perspective. It also includes the study of the problems that are commonplace in design and build and attempt made on how to improve its performance. Its main objectives are to identify those issues from contractor's view and the targeted construction project is school building. These studies are carried out using the survey approach and questionnaire are prepared to interview the respondents, who would be the contractors of the construction projects. The study can be information guidance to the developers, clients and investors before choosing this procurement based on the performance comparison and development because their emphasis is an early completion of the project and fast return on their investment. Other than that, the research is to study the chances of project risk probability and impacts that are faced by the contractors by implementing this design and build procurement contract. Proponents and researchers claim that design and build procurement can save significant amounts of time and money. Thus, the paper will discuss the truth of this statement.
The design and build system was first launched in the Public Works Department by the Malaysian Prime Minister in 1983. The first unit that has applied this design and builds system was by Kuala Terengganu Hospital, which was completed in 1985. Research has shown that there is a continuous increase in the use of design and build over the last 24 years. The increasing of the project complexity in this country prompted the use of the design and build system. The system's use in Malaysia was pioneered by the JKR. Design and build is a single source contract with the owner's interaction to fixed the price for the design, construction and commissioning of a facility. In this system, the only parties that involve is the client and the contractor. As cited by Seng et al., (2006) and (Akintoye and Fitzgerald: 1995; Chevin: 1993) added that in design and build system, there is only single point responsibility of the contractor for both design and construction process. Moreover, Beard et al., (2001) had argued and added that there would be more arguments and questions coming in by the parties involved in the design and build system. Certainly, design and build is a popular and valuable form of procurement particularly with the clients seeking transfer of the design risk and responsibility to the contractor. In addition, many clients regard it as providing value for money and the contractors see it as an opportunity to apply their key strengths in management and coordination of design and construction works. Saxon(2000) argues that integration of design and construction offers better performance in time and cost and results in lesser defects.
Research problems
Design and build is the most preferable type or method of procurement for a large construction project as including in this country also. The ability to overlap between the design and construction phase has made this procurement popular from the client's view. However, there's a constraints that need to be discuss before choosing this type of procurement within a construction project. Whether the design and build procurement can improve one's project in terms of their time, cost and quality performance. Academics commentators had recognize that designers have a significant influence on costs and that a greater margin for error is required with design and build. Practitioners view the use of design and build as a means of transferring the costs risks from the client to contractor. So, this research would dig as much as information from the contractor's view on the effectiveness of the design and build towards saving the cost. Another problem that needs to be evaluated is that how does design and build procurement affect the performance from the corner of its method and procedure. By using design and build procurement, however would still cause problems. So, this research will add on what kind of problems that are commonplace and the problems that the contractors are facing. Lastly, the research continues on how to improve its performance in the contractor's rearview.
These studies would be carried out using the survey approach and questionnaire and are prepared to distribute to the respondents. Because of this research are based on the contractor's overview, the questionnaire would be given mostly to the contractors of the construction project. The questionnaire would also be given to the clients, architect, and consultants that would have their own view towards this kind of procurement. To minimize the scope of research, I focus mostly on surveys that are going to be done towards the contractors of the school that would be using design and build procurement around Malaysia. I might be chosen the school around Kuala Lumpur for minimizing the scope of my research. But the questionnaires are still going to be spread around to any type of construction besides schools. Before commencing my interview and questionnaire, the search of the information about the company and the contractors are received from the internet, web search, lecturers, facilitator, friends and relatives. The selections of the approach of questionnaire are for the reason to pleasure the contractors and other parties. They are veiled by many projects and tones of works that they need to be done. Because of this reason, the approach by using questionnaire might not be a burden to them for my research. The questionnaires are carried out only to the selected contractors and other parties for the details and documents that might be confidential for the public.
Significant/ Implementation of study
The research is on the design and builds procurement and the affect of this approach towards the performance of the construction project. The implementations of study are going to be taken on the construction site for the selected projects and contractors. Most of the selected project would be using the design and build procurement. I will directly go to the contractors for the interview and questionnaire. Thus, to get close to the information, details and documents would be easier and faster. Surveys are going to be distributes between the contractors from the school around Kuala Lumpur. The schools that are asked are using the design and build procurement for the data of surveys on its performance. The questionnaires also are going to be distributed around the contractors of design and build projects. It will not be distributed around the public people on Kuala Lumpur. This is because they would not have the specific knowledge that I need for my research of dissertation on the procurement.
