Literature Review

Due to the complex nature of the construction industry, and the variety of definitions and interpretations of error or rework, there has been little agreement as to a common classification system for recording errors and rework. This leads to uncertainty over the true scale and source of the issue.

There are many quality tools available to help to trace and classify error, for example ‘3 Legs, 5 Why’, Root Cause Analysis, 8D, Failure Mode & Effects Analysis (FMEA) but it is not clear from the literature to what extent these are used in the construction industry.

Discussion To enable consistency of reporting, researchers have sought, and continue to seek, a common taxonomy to describe causes of error and rework. Unfortunately because of the complex and interconnected nature of the industry, there has been little agreement between authors as to which taxonomy use. This section explores the various views which researchers have developed of the problem.