Productivity in house-building

This report covers research by David Miller of the Building Research Association of New Zealand, undertaken in 1975 while he was on an ANZAC Fellowship, based at the Division of Building Research, CSIRO, in Highett, Melbourne, Australia. David was an industiral psychologist who had pioneered research into labour recruitment and turnover in New Zealand, working collaboratively with Trade Unions and employer organisations. Extending this work in Australia was not possible because of the tough industrial relations environment there, so he executed the study of perceptions of determinants of productivity instead. The project involved interviews of managers of volume home-building companies around Melbourne, and also supervisors and contractors. Managers tended to ascribe differences in productivity to contractor quality. Contractors focused more on operational matters under the control of the companies, such as the scheduling of delivery of materials. Understanding these differences in views was important to reaching an understanding of the real determinants.