Open Access Te Herenga Waka-Victoria University of Wellington
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Quality Assurance in Risk Management

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thesis
posted on 2022-07-28, 01:14 authored by Dykman, Alexis

This thesis investigated the inherent relationship quality assurance has with risk management processes, specifically focused on the construction industry perception of risk and uncertainty. On the evidence gathered, there is currently a lack of awareness and knowledge about quality assurance in risk management as a means of creating reliable risk analyses in the New Zealand construction industry. Risk assessments reported by those project managers who were interviewed were not representative of what eventually happened in the projects they managed.

A triangulation research approach was adopted, where a literature analysis, a case study and a survey were used in critical analysis of the relationship between quality assurance, risk, and uncertainty as revealed in the research background chapter. The three methods scrutinise this relationship in different ways and eventually addressed all the research questions posed.

A literature analysis was undertaken to establish the perception and definition of the terms risk and uncertainty before the standards and processes to quantify uncertainty were scrutinised in further detail. This allowed understanding of current concerns to be realised, so these could be tested in the thesis.

A case study of a real-life New Zealand construction project was analysed in specific detail ensuring the literature analysis and the survey were grounded in current industry practice. The aim of this case study analysis was to understand the behaviour of people in the industry in comparison to how they are said to perform in the literature. The case study analysis essentially identified the existence of uncertainty in a project and attempted to understand how uncertainties are being controlled.

An online Qualtrics survey was used to further test the perception and processes used for uncertainty management in the industry. The results showed that the New Zealand construction industry does not typically understand the difference between risk and uncertainty on their own. Technique use proved to be comprehensive with quantification of uncertainty occurring through formal techniques whether purposeful or not. The participants noted that complexity and lack of knowledge were the reasons behind the lack of understanding and that the existence of simple processes or formulas could enable the increase of reliable risk analyses in the construction industry.

History

Copyright Date

2016-01-01

Date of Award

2016-01-01

Publisher

Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington

Rights License

Author Retains Copyright

Degree Discipline

Building Science; Project Management

Degree Grantor

Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington

Degree Level

Masters

Degree Name

Master of Building Science

ANZSRC Type Of Activity code

2 STRATEGIC BASIC RESEARCH

Victoria University of Wellington Item Type

Awarded Research Masters Thesis

Language

en_NZ

Victoria University of Wellington School

School of Architecture

Advisors

Donn, Michael