The General Understanding Of Risk In Construction Industry In Ghana: The Consultant Perspective.

Abstract

The roll of consultants in construction industry cannot be under estimated, from project conception to final completion the consultants are front liners therefore there is a need to understand their perception on risk in construction industry for their effective functioning. The purpose of the study was to understand how consultants in Ghana perceive risk in construction industry. The study objective was to identify consultant’s perception on the causes of risk in construction industry in Ghana and examine the relationship between consultant’s concept of risk and perception on uncertainty.The study adopted a quantitative approach involving a cross-sectional design using survey, questionnaires administered to a population of 355 consultants of the Ghana Consulting Engineering Association (GCEA). Descriptive statistics, cross tabulations, Chi-square were used to analyze the resulting data. The study found that the major causes of risk in construction are usage of substandard materials in construction industry, harmful work-related experience, and the dangers in construction. The study further shown that risks were not the same as uncertainties in construction projects that risks could not lead to positive outcome but the positivity of risks depends on the type of projects the consultants worked on. It also reveal that theft and lack of a critical checklist were the major sources of risks in the construction industry. On the bases of the founding’s the study sort to recommend that effective and efficient monitory system should be implemented at construction site to curtail all issues related to theft. Again investigation should be conducted to examine consultants’ perception on the impact of risks in the construction industry.