The Barriers for the Adoption of Lean Construction Principles in Nigerian Construction Firms
1M. Laisha; 2A. M. Kasimu & 3A. F. Kolawole
1&2 Department of Quantity Surveying, Federal University of Technology Minna
3Department of Quantity Surveying, Federal Polytechnic, Bida
Email: kasimumohammed@yahoo.com
ABSTRACT
Lean construction principles are method of minimize wastage of materials, time and effort during the course of construction projects in order to accomplish the client satisfaction. But most of the Nigerian Construction
Firms are yet to fully adopt the lean construction principles due to certain barriers. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to identify the barriers for the adoption of lean construction principles in Nigerian construction firms.
A detailed review of relevant literature was conducted with the view of collecting relevant data necessary for this paper. A total of 120 numbers of questionnaires was distributed to Engineers, Quantity surveyors,
Builders and Architects in construction firms at Abuja. The descriptive method of analysis was used to analyse the data obtained from the survey. The result obtained shows the followings as top ranked barriers
for the adoption of lean construction principles. These are (1) corruption, (2) poor planning, (3) poor communication, (4) lack of training, (5) lack of top management support & commitment and (6) lack of team
work. These aforementioned are the main barriers for the adoption of lean construction principles in Nigeria construction firms. Therefore, the paper recommended that the top management of construction firms should
be committed to the adoption of lean construction principles by ensuring teamwork among the staff, avoidance of corruption, effective communication and planning to achieve the client’s satisfaction.
Keywords: Construction Firms, Lean Construction, Lean Principles, and Project Performance
