It is unusual to find that housing refurbishment projects have been undertaken with a clear focus on customer orientation directed towards the tenants, or owners of cooperative flats or condominiums. Only recently have researchers in construction management begun to look closer at the relationship between contractors and customers. To assess the scope for customer orientation in the refurbishment industry, current thinking in service management is reviewed here in an attempt to identify principles with implications for housing refurbishment. There is a consensus among service management investigators that services are intangible; other often mentioned characteristics are heterogeneity, perishability, and the inseparability of production and consumption. Except for inseparability these characteristics are valid for refurbishment. Nevertheless, features such as the long turn-round time, the number of participants, the complexity and the uncertainty, distinguish housing refurbishment from most services. There is strong empirical support for the claim that customer satisfaction increases customer loyalty and gives the service producer a positive reputation, ultimately increasing profitability. It is concluded that this insight can be interpreted operationally for housing refurbishment projects, bearing in mind that the tenant or the owner of a cooperative flat is the customer's customer.Housing Refurbishment Customer Satisfaction Service Quality,
The significance of the quality of work in the construction industry has been highlighted in recent years. Nevertheless, it is unusual to find that housing refurbishment projects have been undertaken with a clear emphasis on the service provided for tenants. To assess the scope for tenant satisfaction in the refurbishment industry, an empirical study has been undertaken in an attempt to identify principles which have implications for housing refurbishment. The relationship between service quality, product quality, tenant satisfaction and employee satisfaction is emphasised in the study. The investigation concerns refurbishment of two multi‐family housing estates in Sweden, owned by a semi‐public housing association. Statistical analysis of questionnaire responses from tenants indicates that there is a strong link between meeting the customers’ expectations and contractor reputation. Furthermore, the analysis reveals a strong belief among the workers that quality of work is essential. Conclusions outline the practical implications of these findings.
While service quality receives growing attention in the construction industry, few studies have dealt with the relation between craftsmen and building users. However, when office staff are present in the building during conversion projects (refurbishment or office completion) craftsmen and users will interact. To analyse how this craftsman‐user interaction leads to satisfied or dissatisfied users and ultimately to reputations in the market, a questionnaire survey of office staff and craftsmen in two refurbishment and one office completion project has been carried out. While critical incidents are not as important as expected, the service provided by the contractor appears to be the key to improved reputation. Furthermore, minimizing noise and dust produced should reduce the number of negative views from building users. Findings from the craftsmen survey identify information and work satisfaction as fundamental ingredients for a contractor striving for a positive relation with the users.
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