Analysis of pre-qualification criteria in contractor selection and their impacts on project success

While construction industry practices are reasonably well developed, construction projects still witness widespread failures of many contractors due to varied reasons such as financial problems, poor management, over-commitment and or conflicts and disputes associated with construction activities. Pre-qualification of contractors is a common practice across projects, yet the investigation on the ability of the selected contractors in successful delivery of projects is not widespread. In an attempt to understand these pre-emptive qualification criteria and their links in contractors' performance in projects, a total of 43 influencing technical attributes were identified through a systematic research approach. The relative significance and impacts of the attributes have been determined based on a structured questionnaire survey in selected construction projects. By performing the factor analysis, a total of seven factors significant to contractors' performance were extracted, namely (1) soundness of business and workforce; (2) planning and control; (3) quality management; (4) past performance; (5) risk management; (6) organizational capability; and (7) commitment and dedication. Multiple linear regression models reveal that technical expertise, past success, time in business, work methods and working capital significantly impact on contractors' performance across time, cost and quality success. With a clear understanding of a contractor's performance, these findings could potentially contribute to development of a company's procedures or enhance existing knowledge in relation to the pre-qualification practices in contractor selection in projects.