Abstract
A major challenge facing the construction industry is completing projects within budget and within the prescribed quality standards. Industry stakeholders must develop innovative and creative ways to run modern project management organisations and to complete construction projects successfully. The world is transitioning into the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) era driven by Artificial Intelligence (AI) based technologies at a very fast pace. Adapting to the disruptive technology of this era is critical for the construction sector. The aim of this study was to investigate the beneficial impact of using AI technologies/tools on cost overruns and risk management in construction project management.
For this study, a quantitative research approach was selected as the most effective and practical. A questionnaire was used as a measuring tool to collect data for this study from professionals working in the construction and project management industries. A total of 68 responses were received from the online questionnaire and a statistical analysis was done using the SPSS statistics program. Due to the nature of the data collection method where some of the participants where sourced from LinkedIn (an online professional social media platform), the number of questionnaires sent out cannot be confirmed, therefore, the response rate for the questionnaire cannot be determined. The results were analysed, and they indicated the existence of a significant negative relationships between AI and cost overruns, and between AI and risk management. The findings show that the use of AI technologies/tools in construction project management has a beneficial impact on cost overruns and risk management. The predictive models that were derived from conducting regression analysis showed that when AI is intensified or increased, both cost overruns and risk management decrease.
The study laid a foundation for role players and stakeholders to consider when they decide to start incorporating AI in their organisational construction project management practices. The study was also very helpful in determining the potential benefits that could realise by implementing AI technology-based systems and programmes within the construction project management sphere when delivering construction projects.
Keywords: Artificial Intelligence, Cost Overruns, Risk Management, Construction, Project Management.