Relationships among Risk Management, Partnering, and Contractor Capability in International EPC Project Delivery

摘要

Engineering-Procurement-Construction (EPC) method has become commonly adopted in international construction markets, in which contractors bear enormous risks. Previous studies suggest the need to improve contractors' risk management by partnering with project participants and enhancing their organizational capability. Nevertheless, limited research has systematically and quantitatively addressed the causal relationships among them. This study quantifies the relationships among these themes via the development and validation of a conceptual mediation model. With supporting data from Chinese contractors, this research outlines the statuses on contractors' risk management, application of partnering, and their organizational capability. Path analysis validates that partnering not only effectively facilitates risk management via promotion of contractor capability but also directly enhances risk management. Canonical correlation analyses further reveal the different degrees to which partnering critical success factors (CSFs), contractor capability indicators, and risk management processes are associated. The previously mentioned results contribute to both theory and practice by building interdisciplinary linkages among risk management, partnering, and contractor capability in international EPC project delivery. An in-depth understanding of these cause-effect relationships will allow multiorganizational dynamic risk management research to become state-of-the-art, and will aid EPC contractors in appropriately integrating both intraorganizational and interorganizational resources to manage project risks and achieve superior performance in international EPC projects.