Construction Project Risk Management for Performance Improvement (Polgahawela-Pothuhera-Alawwa Integrated Water Supplying Project)

Abstract

Construction risk management can be defined as the avoidance or the reduction of possible harmful incidents or actions in a construction project. It can be one of the most important factors in a construction project. Depending on the nature of the project, types of risks can be very wide in its range. Understanding the risk factors and the proper management of them, can lead a project to be completed on schedule, avoiding budget overruns whilst ensuring the safety and welfare of all the project participants. This research aims to identify the risks and their possible impacts on a specific construction project. The selected project is the construction of the Polgahawela-Pothuhera-Alawwa Integrated Water Supplying scheme located in the North-Western province of Sri Lanka. Risks categorized under the different sectors such as financial management, technical, quality, health, and safety, environment, social, legal and political were considered in the research but limited to the construction phase of the project. The methodology for this study is based on ISO 31000, which includes risk identification, risk analysis, risk evaluation and risk mitigation. To identify the relevant risks of the project, a structured interview using a questionnaire was conducted among selected project participants. In making the assessments founded on the responses received, weighted credits were assigned based on the academic and professional qualifications of the respondents. The responses were utilized in this manner to develop a listing of risk and its consequences. This highlighted the more severe risks enabling recommendations to be made to mitigate and manage such risks. The risk management process together with knowledge from previous literature was used in making recommendations to mitigate and manage risk towards project performance improvement. It should be noted that the findings could be of benefit to future contractors associated with similar projects.