Improvement methods in UK and Mexican construction industries: a comparison

The application of improvement methods in the manufacturing industry has proven to be a valuable feature of continuous improvement activities. To establish whether the same is true in the construction sector, a survey was conducted to assess the current level of use and the perceived importance of such methods in both the U.K. and in Mexico. Following a broad review of the literature, various improvement tools, techniques and methods were recognized and grouped using affinity diagrams. A questionnaire was designed to collect the information and served as a basis for comparison. The results of the survey showed that, in terms of use, computer networks, laws and regulations, teams and teamwork, inspection and planning software were common practice in the U.K. while computer networks, customer satisfaction surveys, design software, Gantt charts and laws and regulations were commonly used in Mexico. A similar set of methods were perceived as highly important except that inspection and planning software were replaced by customer satisfaction surveys and customer complaints, respectively, in the case of the U.K. companies and Gantt charts by inspection in the case of Mexico. When comparing the mean use and the mean perceived importance for each method in both countries, significant differences were found mainly in the use of those for gathering and organizing customer needs, those aimed at planning and controlling quality and those for technology. Copyright (c) 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.