Partnering for construction excellence-A reality or myth?

Project partnering has gained popularity in the Hong Kong construction industry since its adoption on the North District Hospital project in 1994. An increasing trend in the use of project partnering in building and construction has been observed over the past decade, with a proven track record of success. In order to critically investigate and examine the effectiveness and performance of project partnering as applied in the local building and construction industry, the Construction Industry Institute, Hong Kong (CII-HK) initiated an industry-driven research study in March 2003 to compare the implementation and outcomes of project partnering practices amongst the public, private and infrastructure sectors as well as between building and infrastructure works. This paper summarizes the key findings derived from the CII-HK funded research study completed in late 2004. Based on the case study of six selected projects, a 'best practice' partnering framework is developed. While it has been demonstrated that project partnering can provide extensive benefits to the industry across different sectors, it should be noted that partnering is not a panacea to solve all kinds of problems. What it does is to provide an avenue for people to communicate better thus eliminating unnecessary misunderstanding. It is recommended that partnering be adopted across a wider spectrum of the construction industry during the 21st Century to reap sustainable benefits for construction excellence.