Impact of Contractors’ Bidding Strategies on Bid Success in the Nigeria Construction Industry

Authors

  • Tolulope Samuel Fawale Department of Quantity Surveying, Faculty of Environmental Science, University of Benin, Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria
  • Joshua Oluwasuji Dada Department of Quantity Surveying, Faculty of Environmental Design and Management, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Nigeria

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11113/ijbes.v4.n1.156

Abstract

Several types of researches have been carried out prior to the new millennium on the subject of bidding strategies in the construction industry. Today, organizations are faced with a very complex decision of bid/no-bid because it requires the assessment of large number of highly inter-related variables. The study aims at examining different types of Contractors’ Bidding Strategies (CBS) with a view to determining their impact on bid success. In line with the aim, the study objectives include; evaluation of different types of CBS and; assessment of the success rate of contractors’ bid. The method of approach elicits information on the number of projects bided and successes recorded over a period of time. A total of one hundred and seventy-one useable responses were retrieved from questionnaire administration. Descriptive statistics, tables and percentages as well as mean item score (MIS) were used for data analysis. The study showed that lowest bid, public relations and joint venture bidding strategies have great impact on contractors’ bid success especially on residential, educational and administrative projects in the Nigeria Construction Industry (NCI). Therefore, the study concluded that relationship exists between contractors’ bidding strategies and equivalent successes recorded over a period of time. It is important to also know that lowest bid strategy still remains the most effective bidding strategy for public works contracting in the NCI.

References

Akintoye, A and Main, J (2007) Collaborative relationships in construction: The UK contractors' perception. Engineering, Construction and Architectural Management, 14(6), 597-617.

Bagies, A. and Fortune, C. (2006). Bid/no-bid decision modelling for construction projects, In: Boyd, D (Ed) Procs 22nd Annual Association of Researchers in Construction Management (ARCOM) Conference, Birmingham, UK, pp. 511-521.

Barr, R.S. (1990). General construction contractor bidding strategy variations based on market conditions. A Special Research Problem Presented to the Faculty of the School of Civil Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Civil Engineering.

Cooke, B. and Williams, P. (2015). Construction Planning, Programming and Control: Bidding strategy of construction companies. Construction Essay, Published on 23, March.

Cooke, B. and Williams, P. (2004). Construction Planning, Programming and Control. Construction Essay Publication.

Chua, D. K. H. and Li, D. (2000). ‘Key factors in bidding reasoning model’, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management (ASCE), Vol. 126, No. 5, pp. 349-357.

Chua, D.K.H., Li, D.Z. and Chan, W.T. (2001). Case-based reasoning approach in bid decision making. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 127(1), pp. 35-45.

Emily, B. (2013). Construction Bidding Strategies, www.google.com, accessed on 5th May, 2013.

Flanagan, R., Lu, W., Shen, L. and Jewell, C. (2007). Competitiveness in construction: a critical review of research’, Construction Management and Economics, 25, pp. 989–1000.

Friedman, L. (1956). A competitive bidding strategy. Operational Research, 4, pp. 104–112.

Kumaraswamy, M. M., Palaneeswaran, E. and Humphreys, P. (2000). Selection matters – In construction supply chain optimisation, International Journal of Physical Distributions and Logistics Management, Vol. 30, No. 7-8, pp. 661-680.

Ling, F. Y. Y and Liu, M. (2005). Factors considered by successful and profitable contractors in mark-up size decision in Singapore’, Building and Environment, Vol. 40, No. 11, pp. 1557–1565.

Lu, W.S. (2006). A system for assessing and communicating contractors’ competitiveness. Thesis submitted for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Building and Real Estate, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong.

McCaffer, R. and Harris, F. (2001). Modern Construction Management. 5th Edition. Blackwell Science Ltd, 2001.

Oo, B.L., Drew, D.S. and Lo, H.P. (2008). A Comparison of Contractors’ Decision to bid behaviour according to different market environment. International Journal of Project Management, 28, pp. 439-447.

Shen, L.Y., Lu, W.S. and Yam, C.H.M. (2006). Contractor key competitiveness indicators (KCIs): a China study.’ Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 132(4), pp. 416-424.

Shen, L.Y., Lu, W.S., Shen, Q.P. and Li, H. (2003). A computer-aided decision support system for assessing a contractor’s competitiveness.’ Automation in Construction, 12(5), pp. 577-587.

Tan, Y., Shen, L., and Langston, C. (2010). Contractors’ Competition Strategies in Bidding: Hong Kong Study, Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, Vol. 136, No. 10, pp. 1069–1077.

Tan, Y.T., Shen, L.Y., Khalid., A.G. and Song, S.C. (2008). ‘An examination of the factors affecting contractors’ competition strategy: a Hong Kong study.’ International Journal of Project Organisation and Management, 1(1), pp. 4-23.

Wanous, M., Boussabaine, A.H. and Lewis, J. (1998). Tendering factors considered by Syrian contractors.’ In: Proceedings of the 14th annual ARCOM conference, 2, pp. 535.

Wanous, M., Boussabaine, A.H. and Lewis, J. (2000b). A neural network bid/no bid model: the case for contractors in Syria. Construction Management and Economics, 21, pp. 737-744.

Wolstencroft, L. (2014). Success: How to bid, How to win. Accessed at http://www.aerospacebizdev.com/Bid_and_Win_reprint%5B2%5D.pdf. Retrieved on 8th December, 2014.

Downloads

Published

2017-01-15

How to Cite

Fawale, T. S., & Dada, J. O. (2017). Impact of Contractors’ Bidding Strategies on Bid Success in the Nigeria Construction Industry. International Journal of Built Environment and Sustainability, 4(1). https://doi.org/10.11113/ijbes.v4.n1.156