Design-for-Manufacture Techniques in the Vietnamese Construction Industry: Opportunities and Barriers

Abstract

The Vietnamese construction industry is currently facing many difficult challenges, notably the dramatic increase in demand for housing, poor working conditions with a high accident rate on site and various environmental issues. To solve these issues, applying better construction techniques is one of the most promising solutions. The design-for-manufacture techniques are popular in many developed countries as they save time, are environmentally friendly, and lead to better quality work, more effective management, and safer working conditions. The research presented in this paper was carried out to determine the feasibility of applying the design-for-manufacture techniques, and evaluate the critical barriers related to adopting these methods. To achieve these goals, comparative analysis and Analytic Hierarchy Process were carried out using data gathered from the Vietnamese construction industry. Additionally, a qualitative study was conducted, with the aim to gain practical and insightful knowledge from Vietnamese construction professionals. According to the result using comparative case study to serve as illustration, design-for-manufacture techniques were found to: reduce the construction time by 42.5% (save 170 days); reduce the labor and equipment cost by 20% and 35% respectively; and provide better working condition and management effectiveness. The qualitative study demonstrates that approximately 80% of the key figures in the Vietnamese construction industry are convinced that the design-formanufacture techniques could be popular in Vietnam. However, some critical barriers affecting the selection of these techniques were identified, including cost, lack of knowledge, conservatism/negativism, lack of evaluation tools and lack of available suppliers. These barriers were analysed based on specific groups of experts using the Analytic Hierarchy Process technique. The results indicate that negativism, lack of suppliers and lack evaluation of tools were the most important barriers for government officers, constructors and designers, respectively.