A Comparative Study on Causes of Delay Incompletion of Construction Projects in Oman

Abstract

The aim of this paper was to identify the problems resulting from the delays in completion of construction projects in Oman. A field study was conducted on a number of construction projects in Muscat area to collect data required for analysis. Two groups of projects were studied, the first group included projects constructed during the period 2007–2008 and the second group studied comprised projects constructed during the period 2009–2010. It was found that 40 per cent of the projects constructed during the periods of both groups have experienced delays in completion with slight differences in the length of delay between the two groups. Another finding was that the causes of delay are changing with the time in a pattern depending on different variables. Owner related causes were found to be the dominant reason for delay and contrarily the first to seek solutions.

Keywords: delay, construction projects, Oman, contracts