A STUDY OF THE CONSTRAINTS AFFECTING THE PROPER UTILIZATION OF COMPUTER APPLICATION SOFTWARE IN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN CHENNAI CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES

S. Prakash Chandar, Aminu Tijjani, N. Ganapathy Ramasamy

Abstract: Construction is one of the area in which computer application software are highly required to perform different task at various stages of project construction. Computers have been used to enhance the effectiveness of construction management. Efficient utilization of computer application software is a key to enhancing the proper management of construction activities which will contribute to the successful implementation of construction project. Careful selection of computer application software is required by the construction companies for proper management of their resources. The difficulty about computerization especially with regard to the use of computer application software in resource management require the knowledge and expertise of those working in construction companies, and who are directly involved in the management of construction resources. The study was carried out to determine the obstacles confronting the proper utilization of computer application software in resource management. The result of the questionnaire survey used in this research work clearly indicated those constraints, which include, nonunderstanding about software potentials, lack of qualified personnel to use the software, unaware of most of the resource management software available in the market, communication gap between the vendors and users which contribute to nonunderstanding of the full scope of the software, greater-know-how required from staff, among numerous others. A total of 22 construction companies were selected for the study. An open ended questionnaire which consist of 22 questions with regard to the constraints affecting the proper utilization of computer application software in resource management was designed, validated, and distributed among Engineers, Project Managers, as well as executives who are directly involved in the activities of the construction site.

Keywords: resource management, application software, construction management

DOI: https://doi.org/10.15623/ijret.2015.0402098