ISO 9000 standards: Perceptions and experiences in the UK construction industry

With the adoption by construction firms of BS EN ISO 9000 there has been much debate concerning its effectiveness and value as a quality management system. In spite of the reported benefits of ISO 9000 certification, however, concerns regarding its overall benefit to construction firms due to unnecessary bureaucracy and paperwork, increased costs, stifling of innovation, etc. still persist in the industry. This paper reports on the results of a research carried out on the implementation of BS EN ISO 9000 as a continuation of BS5750 in the UK construction industry from the view point of the experiences and perceptions of quality assurance managers of selected construction firms.