Identification and Evaluation of Subcontractors' Selection Criteria in Highway Construction Projects

摘要

For decades, subcontracting has been utilized extensively in the construction industry. The contractors normally sublet large portions of the work to subcontractors in order to benefit from cost reductions, securing access to specialized services, and risk sharing. In this regard, progress in subcontracting practices, stemming from a meticulous selection of subcontractors based on appropriate criteria, leads to the improvement of project performance. The purpose of this paper is to identify and evaluate the subcontractors selection criteria according to their effects on project performance in "highway construction" projects. On the basis of an exhaustive review of literature, an opinion survey is conducted to achieve the purpose of research. Survey participants include expert subcontractors and general contractors in highway construction projects in Iran. Finally, by analyzing the results of questionnaire surveys, subcontractors selection criteria and indices in highway construction projects are identified and evaluated. Whereas subcontracting is the common practice in highway construction projects, the results of this paper can be used to improve highway construction projects performance. Obviously, performance improvement of highway construction projects, as the most important infrastructure, can play a critical role in the development of communities, especially in developing countries.