Assessment of the Cost and Time Impact of Variation Orders on Construction Projects in Sulaimani Governorate

Abstract

Variation orders are an on-going phenomenon in construction and industry projects worldwide, particularly in the province of Sulaimani, where the project's damage from cost and schedule overrun because of variation orders. However, the effect on project costs and time overrun of variation order has yet to be identified. This study evaluates the impact of variation orders on the cost and time off in the Sulaimani governorate. Two hundred twenty-eight projects from various construction sectors built between 2007-2012 were adopted to calculate the contract cost and schedule overruns due to variation orders. Data analysis was applied in the study were descriptive statistics. One-way ANOVA was also applied to determine whether the overrun of project cost and schedule significantly varied depending on project type, size, duration, location, and awarded years. The findings indicated that cost overruns are very common due to variation orders. 95.6% of the projects were studied being impacted, and overrun in project cost are also huge, with 16%. Time also overruns more common than cost overruns due to the variation orders. 98.7% of the projects were studied in Sulaimani were affected by time overrun with an average of 46.3% of initial duration observed. Findings also indicated that two out of five parameters measured in the analysis had a significant correlation with project cost overruns. Three out of five considered variables correlated with construction time overruns.

A Proposed Model for Variation Order Management in Construction Projects

“…The procedures of the sequence of change variations when the value exceeds a specified rate of the total contract start by submitting a claim from the contractor to re-study the rates and takes place from the project start date until the primary handover, as defined in items (3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13) from the FIDIC of the general conditions for FIDIC contracts. Before issuing the primary handover certificate, the engineer can change the work through the instructions he issues or request that the contractor submit a proposal [35,[53][54][55][56].…”

Developing an Integrative Data Intelligence Model for Construction Cost Estimation

“…Implementing a project with successful performance is challenging with growing awareness of the environment and customer requirements changing [8]. e construction industry is dynamic and complex since it needs the implementation of successful project management strategies [9,10]. Unsuccessful strategies cause cost and schedule overruns, leading to undesirable results and reducing customer satisfaction [11][12][13].…”

Building Information Modelling Technology in Mitigating Cost Overruns and change orders in Construction Projects

“…Because of the diversity and complexity of its sub-sectors, it is more crucial to economic, demographic, and social developments, since its growth is influenced by interconnected elements such as the overall political climate, a secure investment environment, and adequate infrastructure. Although, the construction industries boost the economy by creating jobs and money(Faten Albtoush, Doh, Abdul Rahman, & Albtoush, 2020), many projects are delayed, causing project time and cost estimates to be exceeded (Mohammad, Ali, & Najm, 2021) (Sweis, Sweis, Hammad, & Shboul, 2008). The project's delays has cause longer waiting time than necessary by the people and economy for the provision of public goods and services (Sharma, Rahul, & Rao, 2012).…”