Performance of design-build projects in terms of cost, quality and time: Views of clients, architects and contractors in Singapore

One of the major problems in the construction industry is that of fragmentation. This has led to an increased adoption of design-build (DB) as a procurement route in recent years. This move attempts to solve problems associated with the use of the traditional design-bid-build method. The performance of DB projects is investigated under three aspects, namely quality, time and cost. Results of the opinion survey concluded that contractors, architects and clients agreed that DB projects perform well in these three areas. This confirms the inherent advantages that DB has to offer. It is concluded that DB is indeed a worthwhile procurement route but the various participants must understand its structure and accept the changes involved.