Project alliancing involves the active collaboration of construction project owners and nonowner participants (designer, contractors, and suppliers)

Lean thinking' holds out the promise of dramatic improvements in construction production processes, especially in waste minimization. While there exist empirical studies of 'leanness' with regard to non-relational-type projects, there is a need to analyse its applicability in relational contexts, such as an alliance. The application of 'lean' to a project alliance in a viaduct replacement in New Zealand is investigated here. The primary objective is to define a framework to streamline improvements in processes and to verify the applicability of the defined framework to a real construction alliance project. Participant observations, project documentation and action research meetings were used to collect data on the waste identification and elimination processes. The findings indicate that the construction work in a project alliance can be improved considerably by eliminating or reducing waste. Moreover, the savings are substantial, as the processes investigated were cyclic and repetitive. This framework is equally suited to waste detection and improvements at the site level. Project organizations should detect needs and opportunities for process change and transform processes accordingly. The current lack of any waste elimination technique, which could provide a significant competitive advantage for industry participants, has been established. Organizational conditions exist in project alliances that help to disseminate and sustain the lean concept.

Different procurement methods have been developed and applied in the construction industry for improving performance. At the same time, novel management concepts have been adopted for performance improvement based on new production methodologies. The lean principle is one such methodology being applied in the construction industry. This paper proposes that with the right combination of objectives, principles and techniques, this can form the basis for a new project delivery system. The paper has as its objective the identification of an appropriate procurement method that incorporates lean principles. It reviews extant literature on the lean concept and its application in the construction industry, as well as construction procurement methods, and their individual characteristics. The study finds that partnership arrangements have a higher correlation with lean principles compared to other procurement methods because of the emphasis on collaboration and teamwork through construction partnerships.

The construction sector is lagging behind other industries in terms of efficiency and value achievement. Several building sector initiatives are introduced to improve productivity and project value enhancement. Significant developments such as Lean principles and BIM tools have been applied in the construction sector to achieve efficiency and enhanced productivity while minimizing waste. Lean principles in construction practice are a developing research area, and BIM tools have been widely used in construction project delivery and communications. Although these concepts are beneficial, barriers to their integration and joint implementation have not previously been explored. The paper investigates barriers to implementing Lean and BIM and their interrelationships in the New Zealand construction industry. A three-step triangulation methodology was used in the study to validate the findings. The study used an extensive literature review process, case studies, and expert interviews to consolidate the findings. Barriers to Lean and BIM implementation in construction practice were identified, which include strong cultural resistance, lack of Lean-BIM understanding, resistance to change, lack of knowledge of the Lean-BIM method, and lack of support from senior staff in New Zealand organizations. The effect of implementing Lean-BIM principles is discussed, as are recommendations for implementing the method in construction practice.