ARTICLE IN PRESS

Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511

www.elsevier.com/locate/buildenv

ISO 9000 in construction: An examination of its

application in Turkey
A.M. Turk
Department of Civil Engineering, Istanbul Kultur University, Atakoy Yerleskesi D100 Yanyol, 34156 Bakirkoy, Istanbul, Turkey
Received 15 December 2004; accepted 14 February 2005

Abstract
ISO 9000, the quality management system standards developed by the International Standards Organization (ISO), is widely used in
the construction industry, as it is in all industries in the world. Recently, a growing interest has been paid to the use of this system in the
construction industry. Despite the growing interest, ISO 9000 use of construction rms has not been sufciently studied from the
perspective of developing countries. In this article, with regard to the ISO 9000 quality management system (QMS) in Turkey, the
characteristics of contractor rms in the construction industry, the perceptions, behavior and experiences of the rms in regard to ISO
9000 QMS are discussed. A eld study has been executed, and a questionnaire has been carried out. In total, 138 construction rms,
members of Turkish Contractors Association and representing the top-level rms operating both in Turkey and in the international
market, have been selected for this study. The evaluation of the data points to the fact that the surveyed construction rms generally
have a positive approach toward ISO 9000 QMS and that ISO 9000 QMS provides important advantages for the rms. However ISO
9000 QMS cannot be made widespread and applied effectively due to certain disadvantages and difculties in practice.
r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Keywords: ISO 9000; Quality management system (QMS); Standards; Construction

1. Introduction
In the construction industry, quality is dened as
meeting the requirements of the designer, the contractor,
the regulatory agencies and the project owner [1]. The
term high quality building project reminds us of
factors like the design being easily understandable and
applicable, conformity of the design with specications,
economics of construction, ease of operation, ease of
maintenance and energy efciency [3]. In the construction industry, it is a rule that projects must be completed
within the planned cost, at the scheduled time and at the
required quality level. Quality may sometimes be
ignored in the construction industry in order to cut the
costs and/or shorten the project term. Quality assessment is provided through quality assurance and quality
Tel.: +90 212 661 94 51x2074; fax: +90 212 661 85 63.

E-mail address: murat.turk@iku.edu.tr.

0360-1323/$ - see front matter r 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.buildenv.2005.02.013

control in the construction industry. Quality assurance

refers to the system controlling the provision of a
product or service for the purpose of satisfying the
customer needs [2]. Construction quality control means
the specic application of the quality assurance program
and its related activities [3]. In this framework, ISO 9000
QMS standards have been widely used in the construction industry in recent years as in all industries of the
world. As a result, a growing interest has appeared in
the literature with respect to the use of ISO 9000 QMS in
the construction industry. Various studies have been
carried out for ISO 9000 applications in European,
Asian and North American countries in the construction
industry [416]. In these studies, it is questioned whether
ISO 9000 QMS is an appropriate tool for the construction industry, or, more specically, for the construction
rms. In the studies, the advantages and disadvantages
are presented on equal terms and the constraints in
application are identied. However, the use of ISO 9000

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A.M. Turk / Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511

QMS in construction rms has not been sufciently

studied from the perspective of developing countries.
That is, very few studies have been produced to-date for
ISO 9000 applications within the construction industry
using examples from developing countries. The purpose
of this article is to put forth the contractor rm
characteristics in the construction industry related to
ISO 9000 QMS in Turkey, and to nd out the
perceptions and behavior of the rms and the rms
experiences. The contribution expected from this study
are taking the guidance of the knowledge and experiences attained to make widespread the ISO 9000 QMSs
and use them in relevant applications in the construction
industry at both the domestic and the international
level.
Extending and applying ISO 9000 QMS for the
construction industry in Turkey is important for three
aspects. The rst aspect is that the construction
industry, as in all other countries, is an important
economic activity in the Turkish economy. It is accepted
as one of the leading industries of the Turkish economy
since this industry is based largely on domestic production, and has a wide employment potential, an intense
input-output relationship with other industries, especially the manufacturing industry, and brings in foreign
exchange with the contractors projects that are carried
out abroad. The construction industry, which works
with relatively labor-intense technology and plays an
important role in the reduction of unemployment, has a
6% share on average within the total employment
picture [17]. It is estimated that the construction
industry also has a 6% share on average in the GNP
generated in the Turkish economy with respect to
production, and this share has risen to 33% with the
contribution of other industries that operate in conjunction with the construction industry. As the construction industry is directly related to xed capital
investments, the growth of the construction industry
affects the rate of growth in the national economy. The
construction investments generally constitute 60% of
the total investment amount realized in Turkey [17]. In
the economy, besides the construction investments
realized by private and public sectors, international
contracting services are also important. The contractors
who undertake international construction projects do
not only provide foreign exchange to the country in
terms of prot transfer or the money earned by the
employees of the rms, but also contribute largely to the
balance of payments through construction materials,
machinery and equipment export. It will be useful for
the Turkish construction sector to apply QMS effectively and widely in order to strengthen its position in
the international market, to have access to new job
opportunities, and to improve its image.
Secondly, application of QMS especially by contractors in the domestic market will be useful in order to

restore their images distorted particularly due to the

major earthquakes that occurred recently. As a matter
of fact, the devastating loss of life and property in these
earthquakes occurring in 1999 in Turkey has adversely
affected the image of the construction industry as a
whole. Nearly, 93% of Turkey is located in an active
seismic zone. Nearly, 98% of the population lives in
settlement units that involve an earthquake risk. In
total, 61% of dwelling losses, the highest rate of
dwelling loss in natural disasters, is caused by earthquakes. The economic losses caused directly by the
earthquakes are approximately 3% of the GNP [18]. It is
a known fact that this rate amounts to 7% with the
addition of the indirect losses. Despite rapid transition
and the ability to adapt to new technologies in the
construction sector in Turkey, the performance of
building inventory against natural disasters causes great
concern. The concerns about the duration and cost of
construction may override the quality of construction
much of the time. Therefore, it will be constructive if the
use of ISO 9000 QMS in the domestic market increases.
The third aspect is Turkeys adaptation process to the
European Union. In particular, the extensive use of ISO
9000 QMS and standardization in the construction
industry in member countries of the European Union
[19] may require the use of ISO 9000 QMS especially for
contractors in the construction industry in Turkey, a
country aiming to be accepted to the European Union.
In order for Turkish contractors to have a more effective
position in both the domestic and international construction market, QMS should be established and used
extensively and effectively in the construction industry
as well as in all industries. This application and
sustainability of QMS will increase the quality of
construction projects in Turkey. In addition, it will
make it easier to adapt to the systems of developed
countries and may strengthen the position of the
construction industry in the international market.
When all these national and international activities in
the Turkish construction industry are taken into
consideration, the studies that probe the experiences
and opinions of the rms on the use of ISO 9000 QMS
are not sufcient. In a thesis study in 1998, a survey
carried out on a very limited number of rms (22 rms)
in the construction sector revealed that almost all rms
have grasped the importance of having a quality system,
but they do not have enough experience on how to apply
the system correctly, and experience problems on issues
such as documentation, communication, training and
process development [20].
In the rst part of the paper, a literature survey has
been performed with respect to ISO 9000 QMS
applications in the construction industry. In addition,
a theoretical infrastructure has been set up in connection
with ISO 9000 QMS applications and the existing
situation of construction rms in Turkey. The second

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A.M. Turk / Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511

part of the article covers the questionnaire surveys

carried out to provide information and collect data
about the use of ISO 9000 QMS in the construction
rms that are the members of the Turkish Contractors
Association (TCA) and their relevant outcomes. The
results of the questionnaire are considered in four parts.
In the rst part, the characteristics of the rms are
explained. The second part deals with the perceptions of
the surveyed construction rms on the importance of
ISO 9000 QMS. In the third part, perceptions of the
rms related to the advantages and disadvantages of
ISO 9000 QMS are analyzed. In the third part, the
experiences of the rms related to the applications of
ISO 9000 QMS are given. The third section of the article
focuses on the conclusion and recommendations.
1.1. Literature survey: ISO 9000 in the construction
industry
ISO 9000 QMS standards have been applied in almost
all industries in the world since 1987. Among the basic
principles of the system are that it is customer-focused,
has established an in-house leadership environment, has
the participation of employees, uses a process approach
and a systematic management approach, seeks permanent improvement of the system, desires decision-taking
on a factual base, and suggests the establishment and
maintenance of relations between the sub-contractor
and suppliers based on mutual benets. ISO 9000 QMS
standards are widely accepted in the global construction
industry. This industry has taken its place as the largest
one in the listing of ISO 9001:2000 certicate numbers
granted throughout the world up to the end of 2003 and
has approximately a 9% share overall [19].
The products produced and the services provided in
the construction industry are unique, in other words,
not repetitive, unlike other industries. The products and
services provided in each project have a unique design
and construction process, process sequence, and modules unique to each project. It is very common to involve
suppliers and sub-contractors in the process in order to
keep these processes appropriately continuing. This
makes it difcult to dene and apply the projects and
processes with prototype and repetitive procedures.
Also, construction projects are associated with different
factors. For example, local effects, environmental
factors, social reactions, cost and the completion period
are the effects to be planned at the design stage. All these
have revealed the need to study whether ISO 9000 QMS
was appropriate for construction rms in the past. Some
studies in the literature put forth that ISO 9000 QMS is
not appropriate for construction rms. For example,
Landin [4] has put forward, as a result of interviews with
12 construction rms holding ISO 9000 certicate in
Sweden in 2000, that QMS standards are very abstract
and hard to put into practice. Although it is considered

503

that it will increase the competition, especially in the

construction industry, and that the rm will start to
work more effectively, it is stated that it is hard for the
industry to meet its needs due to the diversity of the
processes in construction applications and the requirement to produce a different product/service for each
project. Similarly, in another study based on a
questionnaire survey carried out with 93 rms in the
construction industry of Singapore, regardless of
whether they have ISO 9000 quality certicates or not,
it is shown how the ISO 9000 certication has been
reected in its application. The results show that
certication does not affect quality management applications of the rms and the product/service qualities
provided [5].
However, according to some studies in the literature,
ISO 9000 QMS is an appropriate tool for construction
rms. In a case study carried out by Pheng and Wee [6],
it is presented that the effective application of ISO 9000
QMS can impede the shortcomings arising from the
application of construction projects and the prevention
and repetition of faults. Pheng, Abeyegoonasekera [7]
has brought together the principles of ISO 9000 QMS
and the principles of buildability in the construction
industry by using a case study of a condominium
project. It is claimed that an effective and appropriate
work platform can be formed for these types of projects.
In the condominium project, the buildability rate has
increased, effectiveness has been raised and costs have
been reduced with the use of this platform. It is put forth
that ISO 9000 QMS will set up an appropriate platform
to enhance the buildability of the project in both design
and construction stages of the project.
The rms in the construction industry obtain ISO
9000 QMS certication for different reasons. Ideally, the
construction rms should obtain ISO 9000 QMS
standards in order to satisfy their customers, to optimize
the rms resources, and to manage the aimed for inhouse quality procedures. However, in reality, many
construction rms attain this certication due to the
request of their customers or as a condition of the public
tender authorities. On the other hand, there are many
rms that consider using ISO 9000 certication to gain a
reputation and as a tool to attract potential customers.
In another study carried out on 33 contractors from
Hong Kong certied with ISO 9000 QMS, it turns out
that the main reason for the application of the rm of
ISO 9000 QMS is especially to participate in public
projects as an obligation of their customers [8]. A
questionnaire survey was carried out by Ofori and
others among the contractors holding ISO 9000
certication in Singapore. The purposes for a rms
transition to ISO 9000 QMS include the following
reasons respectively starting from the most important
one: to provide their customers quality assurance, to
improve the operation procedures of the rm, to

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A.M. Turk / Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511

enhance the competitive power of the rm, to improve

its image, to consider that it will become obligatory in
the future, and to reduce the operational costs [9].
It is proposed that obtaining ISO 9000 QMS
certication by construction rms in the industry has
various advantages and disadvantages. It is identied
that ISO 9000 QMS certication introduces advantages
such as more systematic paper work and documentation, bettering of in-house communication, and an
increase in the rms competitive power. On the other
hand, the increase in paper work and the addition in the
amount of time required of the management along with
an increase in project costs have been recited as
disadvantages. It is noted that there is a great similarity
between the responses of large- and medium-scale rms
[8]. In a study carried out by Ofori and others, the
advantages of having a QMS for the rms are,
respectively, the strengthening of the corporate image,
the development of operation procedures, an increase in
competitive power, an increase in output, an increase in
communication among employees of the rm, and a
reduction of material waste [9]. In the study published
by Yates and Aniftos, the results of a comprehensive
questionnaire survey carried out for US construction
rms have been published. As a result of the questionnaire, the rms cited, protecting their international
market shares, having the ease to include new projects,
and having an advantage over their competitors, as
advantages, and additional work loads and costs caused
by standardization as disadvantages [10,11]. In a
questionnaire survey carried out in the US, it is stated
that ISO 9000 QMS is an appropriate tool for US
construction rms, and bears the advantages of development of in-house management and its use as a
marketing tool [12]. The results of a questionnaire
survey carried out among contractors in Saudi Arabia
point to some difculties such as the increase in the
amount of paper work, the difculty in controlling the
sub-contractors, the difculty in understanding the
terminology used in the standards, the additional work
load on personnel, and the need for a full-time quality
manager. The high costs of certication, reaction to the
alterations in the system at various levels within the
rm, loss of productivity in the work force during the
restructuring of the system, conicts in management,
lack of trained personnel, difculty in applying QMS
due to the distance of construction sites, communication
problems caused by a multi-lingual environment arising
from the diverse nationality of the personnel, and
cultural differences in the work force have been noted
as current obstacles for transition to QMS [13].
When all these studies are examined, it appears that
there are different opinions for the reasons for having
ISO 9000 QMS and the advantages and disadvantages
brought by its application in the construction industry.
As for other industries, it has been proven that ISO 9000

QMS will create an effective mechanism to reduce

material and labor waste in procedures like production
and delivery, and will improve protability, whereby the
rm may increase its market share. In addition, it is
acknowledged that the product or the service provided
will be presented optimally, due to the enhancement
provided at all levels of product and service with ISO
9000 certication, by which the rms marketing
opportunities and market share will increase and the
rm improves its image. Likewise, advantages such as
enrichment of the rms operation processes, increase in
productivity, improvement of the rms self-condence,
improvement of customer satisfaction, increase in the
performance of suppliers and tighter controls on the
sub-contractors may also be perceived as an advantageous outcome of ISO 9000 QMS. In ISO 9000 QMS,
beside the products and services, processes are certicated. The main point here is the idea that if the
management of the processes is good, the products or
the services that are provided will be good too.
However, it is another nding that, unlike other
industries, goods and service production, which has
unique characteristics and quality cannot be standardized in the construction industry. It is also one of the
ndings of the studies that there is involvement of many
different processes, with large numbers of professionals
and rms into a project in the construction industry. For
example, the existence of a large number of suppliers
and sub-contractors causes a uniqueness of the product
or service provided as well as perhaps causing difculties
in the application of ISO 9000 QMS among the rms in
the sector and even among the counties. Therefore, the
studies concerning the application of ISO 9000 QMS in
the construction industry in different countries will
contribute to the literature.
1.2. The existing situation of the use of ISO 9000 in the
construction industry in turkey
Despite the acknowledgement of ISO 9000 QMS by
the construction industry as well as in many other
industries in Turkey, it can be seen in Table 1 that the
number of ISO 9001:2000 certicates is very low when
compared to other countries such as European and
Asian countries. According to the report published by
ISO, the total number of ISO 9001:2000 certicates in
Turkey was 2396 as of the end of 2003, approximately
100 of which belong to construction rms [19].
TCA is the most experienced professional organization of the Turkish construction industry. The business
volume of TCA members covers 70% of the domestic
projects and 90% of the foreign projects carried out by
Turkish construction rms. The member rms of TCA
have been operating in the international market since
1972, and nearly 50% of 1500 projects undertaken in 56
countries until the end of 2003 are projects related to

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A.M. Turk / Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511
Table 1
The comparison of construction sectors in different countries
according to their ISO 9001:2000 certication numbers [19]
Country

ISO 9001:2000
construction
industry totals
(percentage in
global market)

Italy
Japan
China
Spain
Korea
UK
France
Germany
Turkey
Singapore
USA

13095
11876
11096
2578
2400
876
854
372
100
91
38

World total

51188

(25.5a)
(23.2)
(21.6)
(5.0)
(4.6)
(1.7)
(1.6)
(0.7)
(0.2)
(0.1)
(0.07)

ISO 9001:2000
number for all
sectors

Percentage of
construction
sector in the
country

64120
38750
96715
22203
12846
9859
13342
14375
2396
1280
14787

20.4
30.6
11.4
11.6
18.6
8.8
6.4
2.5
4.1
7.1
0.25

500125

10.2

Source: International organization for standardization. ISO survey of

ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001 Certicates2003, CD-ROM, 2004,
Geneva.
a
Numbers in brackets are in percentages.

Table 2
The amount of the international construction work contracted by the
members of Turkish Contractors Association [21]
Year

Total amount of construction work (US$)

19801989
19901999
20002003

12,310,862,179
19,782,515,860
4,502,083,060

Total

36,595,461,099

Source: www.tmb.org.tr. Turk Muteahhitler Birligi, 2004.

housing, superstructures (roads, bridges, dams, tunnels)

and industrial plants. Table 2 gives the change in
business volumes undertaken by the TCA and the
member rms in the international market on a yearly
basis [21]. Additionally, 11 Turkish contractors (Enka,
Gama, Tekfen, Stfa, Summa, Alarko, Hazinedaroglu,
Dogus, Baytur, Soyak, Limak), all members of the
TCA, are listed among the ENR 225 Top Contractors of
2004. These rms are ranked according to construction
revenue generated outside of each rms home country
in 2003 in US$ millions [22].

2. Field study
2.1. Survey sample and analysis method
The questionnaire survey method has been applied in
order to provide information related to the use of ISO

505

9000 QMS certication by construction rms in Turkey.

Literature review has been utilized for the preparation
of the questions on the questionnaire [9,10,12,13]. After
the preparation of questionnaire, a pilot survey was
applied to 12 construction rms. According to the
results of this pilot survey, the questions on the
questionnaire were then revised. The questionnaire
forms were sent to construction rms in July 2004
along with return envelopes. A total of 138 construction
rms, members of the TCA were selected to be surveyed.
These rms, registered in the TCA, represent the top
category operating in both the domestic market in
Turkey and the international market.
The questionnaire was arranged in a single form to
cover the rms regardless of whether they hold ISO 9000
QMS certication or not. The questionnaire consists of
three sections. The rst section covers questions
intended to reveal the corporate proles of the rms.
The second section includes the perceptions of rms
about ISO 9000 certication. The third section consists
of questions related to the experiences of construction
rms intended for ISO 9000 QMS applications. The
questions on the form are inclusive of closed-end ones
and questions on a ve-point scale (varying between 2,
1, 0, +1, and +2 values). The questions in the third
group are required to be answered only by the rms
holding ISO 9000 certication.
Until the end of August 2004, 42 out of 138
construction rms had returned the questionnaires. In
order to increase the number of replies, one-on-one
phone conversations were made at the beginning of
September with the authorized personnel of the construction rms that had not returned their questionnaire. By the end of September, a total of 68
questionnaires were completed giving a rate of return
of 49%.
After the completion of survey, the data obtained
from these questionnaires was transferred into the SPSS
8.5 program. Descriptive analysis, the w2 independence
test, and T-test statistical analysis techniques have been
used in the analysis of the obtained data.
2.2. Analysis and results
2.2.1. Firm characteristics
The respondents of the questionnaire have the
following ranks: 67.6% (46) are quality department
managers, 10.3% (7) are CEOs, 5.9% (4) are executive
managers, 5.9% (4) are engineering department managers, 10.3% (7) are other personnel. A total of 86.8%
(59) of the surveyed rms operate in the construction
services (contracting services). The scope of 4.4% (3) is
related to construction services and consulting services.
The total amount of contracted projects in last 5 years
was US$ 025 million for 37.9% (25) of the surveyed
rms, US$ 100250 million for 19.7% (13), US$ 50100

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A.M. Turk / Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511

million for 18.2% (12), US$ 2550 million for 13.6% (9)
and over US$ 250 million for 10.6% (7). In the past 5
years, 33.3% (22) of the surveyed rms got 025% of
their business volume from the international market,
13.7% (9) got 2550% from the international market,
10.6% (7) derived 5070% from the international
market, and 9.1% (6) derived 100% of their business
volume from the international market. In total, 33.3%
(22) of the surveyed construction rms received their
entire business volume over the same time period from
the domestic market. The total number of employees
working in 53% (35) of the surveyed construction rms
is above 200, between 100200 employees in 16.7% (11)
of the rms, between 50 and 100 employees in 12.1% (8)
of the rms, between 20 and 50 employees in 15.2% (10)
of the rms, between 1020 employees in 1.5% (1) of the
rms, and between 110 employees in 1.5% (1) of the
rms. 91.2% of these rms (62) hold ISO 9000
certicates, and 8.8% (6) of the rms do not possess
ISO 9000 QMS certication. 89.7% of the surveyed
rms (61) use ISO 9001:2000 standards. Six of the
surveyed rms that do not possess ISO 9000 registration
plan to obtain the certicate in near future. Of the
surveyed rms that have ISO 9000 QMS; 11.3% (7) have
been using and applying ISO 9000 QMSs for 510 years,
75.8% (47) for 15 years and 12.9% (8) for 01 year
(Table 3).
2.2.2. Perceptions of construction firms on ISO 9000
2.2.2.1. Perceptions related to the importance of ISO
9000 QMS. In total, 83.6% (56) of the surveyed
construction rms consider that ISO 9000 QMS is an
appropriate tool for construction rms. According to
89.7% (61) of these rms, ISO 9000 QMS has made a
positive impact on the Turkish construction industry.
Similarly, 94.1% (64) of those surveyed consider that the
importance of ISO 9000 certication will increase in the
near future. According to 82.4% (56) of these construction rms, ISO 9000 QMS certication has to be made
mandatory. When these perceptional questions from the
questionnaire are evaluated within the framework of
descriptive analysis, a preliminary deduction can be
made that the surveyed rms have positive opinions
concerning ISO 9000 QMS. However, it is important to
know how these perceptional questions are assessed
within the framework of a different grouping in the
sample. It may be useful to set up certain hypotheses in
order to perform these assessments (Table 4).
Hypothesis 1. There is no difference between the size of
the rms and their perceptions about ISO 9000.
Denition of the size of a rm is evaluated in two
aspects. First, the average business volume of the rm in
last 5 years can be considered as a variable that represents
the size of the rm. The relation between this variable and
perception questions can be tested. Second, the total

Table 3
Characteristics of rms
No

Item

V0

Respondent on behalf of the

company
CEO
Executive manager
Quality department manager
Engineering department
manager
Others
Scope of the company
Construction
Manufacturing and supply
Engineering design services
Consulting services
Other
Total amount of contracted
projects in last 5 years (in
US$)
0 25 million
2550 million
50100 million
100250 million
Above 250 million
Percent of total contracted
work taken from international
market in last 5 years (%)
0
025
2550
5075
100
Total number of employees in
the company
1 10
1020
2050
50100
100200
More than 200
Availability of ISO 9000
QMS certification
Yes
No

V1

V2

V3

V4

V6

Number of all
rms

7
4
46
4

(10.3)a
(5.9)
(67.6)
(5.9)

7 (10.3)
59
3
2
1
3

(86.8)
(4.4)
(2.9)
(1.5)
(4.4)

25
9
12
13
7

(37.9)
(13.6)
(18.2)
(19.7)
(10.6)

22
22
9
7
6

(33.3)
(33.3)
(13.7)
(10.6)
(9.1)

1
1
10
8
11
35

(1.5)
(1.5)
(15.2)
(12.1)
(16.7)
(53)

6 (8.8)
62 (91.2)

Source: A.M. Turk (2004).

a
Numbers in brackets in percentages.

number of personnel employed in the rm can be

perceived as a variable that represents the size of the rm.
Similarly, the relation between this variable and the
perception questions can be tested. In the testing of the
dependence between these variables, the w2 independence
test was used. The w2 test of independence is performed in
order to test whether there is dependence between the
predetermined characteristics of the variables, by classication of the variables in the data set in the form of a onedimensional or multi-dimensional crosswise table within
the frame of a hypothesis.

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Table 4
Perceptions of rms about ISO 9000 QMSs
No

Item

V9

ISO 9000 QMS is an

appropriate tool for
construction industry
Yes
No
ISO 9000 QMS has a
positive impact on Turkish
construction sector
Yes
No
The importance of ISO
9000 QMS will increase for
Turkish construction sector
soon
Yes
No
ISO 9000 QMS has to be
mandatory for Turkish
construction industry
Yes
No

V10

V11

V12

Number of all
rms

11 (16.4a)
56 (83.6)

61 (89.7)
7 (10.3)

64 (94.1)
4 (5.9)

56 (82.4)
12 (17.6)

Source: A.M. Turk (2004).

a
Numbers in brackets in percentages.

According to the results of w2 independence test

performed to test the hypothesis, no relation or
dependence has been identied between the business
volume undertaken in the surveyed rm and whether
ISO 9000 QMS is appropriate for the construction rm
(The Pearson w2: 2.554, p: 0.110). Similarly, no
dependence has been identied between the business
volume realized in the surveyed rm in the last 5 years
and whether or not ISO 9000 QMS has positive effects
(The Pearson w2: 0.099, p: 0.753). No dependence has
been identied between the business volume realized by
the surveyed rm in the last 5 years and whether the
importance of ISO 9000 QMS will soon increase (The
Pearson w2: 0.940, p: 0.332). No dependence has been
identied between the business volume realized by the
surveyed rm in the last 5 years and the perceptions of
the rms with respect to the requirement of holding ISO
9000 certication. There is independence between both
variables (w2: 0.194, p: 0.660).
According to the results of the w2 independence test
performed to test the hypothesis, no relation or
dependence has been identied between the average
number of personnel employed in the surveyed rm and
whether ISO 9000 QMS is appropriate for the construction rms (The Pearson w2: 1.340, p: 0.247). Similarly,
no dependence has been identied between the average
number of personnel employed in the surveyed rm and
whether ISO 9000 QMS has positive effects (The
Pearson w2: 0.584, p: 0.445). There is a signicant

507

relationship between the average number of personnel

employed in the surveyed rm and whether the
importance of ISO 9000 QMS will soon increase (The
Pearson w2: 4.028, p: 0. 045). No dependence has been
identied between the total number of personnel
employed in the surveyed rm and the perceptions of
the rms with respect to the requirement of holding ISO
9000 QMS. There is independence between the two
variables (w2: 0.230, p: 0.632). As a result of the analysis,
the hypothesis that there is no difference between the
size of firms and the perceptions of firms with respect to
ISO 9000 QMS is veried.
Hypothesis 2. There is no difference between whether
the rm has been awarded contracts in the international
market and the perceptions of the rms with respect to
ISO 9000 QMS.
According to the results of w2 independence test
performed to examine the hypothesis, no relation or
dependence has been identied between whether the
rms have been awarded contracts in the international
market or not and whether ISO 9000 QMS is appropriate for construction rms (The Pearson w2: 1.208, p:
0.272). Similarly, no dependence has been identied
between whether or not the surveyed rms have been
awarded contracts in the international market and
whether ISO 9000 QMS has positive effects (The
Pearson w2: 0.080, p: 0.777). No dependence has been
identied between whether the surveyed rms have been
awarded contracts in the international market and
whether the importance of ISO 9000 QMS will increase
soon (The Pearson w2: 0.532, p: 0.466). No dependence
has been identied between whether the surveyed rms
have been awarded contracts in the international market
and the perceptions of the rms about whether ISO 9000
QMS are compulsory. There is independence between
the two variables (w2: 0.218, p: 0.640).
As a result of the analysis, the hypothesis that there
is no difference between whether the rms have been
awarded contracts in the international market or not
and their perceptions concerning ISO 9000 QMS is
veried. According to the results of the descriptive
analysis and the w2 analysis, it is concluded that the rms
have a positive opinion about ISO 9000 QMS, and that
this opinion is not dependent on the size of the rm or
whether the rm has been awarded contracts in the
international market.
2.2.2.2. Perceptions with respect to the advantages and
disadvantages of ISO 9000 QMS. In the questionnaire
survey, the rms were asked about their opinions on the
advantages of having ISO 9000 QMS certication. The
evaluations of rms on the advantages of ISO 9000
QMS have been analyzed by using the T-test. The onesample T-test has been performed to determine whether
the mean rating of a sample is signicantly different

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A.M. Turk / Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511

Table 5
Advantages of ISO 9000 QMS
Advantages

Mean

Standard deviation

t-Statistic

p-Value

Enhances companys image

Improves denitions of responsibilities in the company
Gets better communication with customers
Improves companys operating procedures
Improves the control on subcontractor rms
Improves customer satisfaction
Improves communication among the companys employees
Increases productivity
Supports fact that subcontractors seek ISO 9000 quality management system certication
Improves communication with subcontractors
Increases self-condence of the company
Increases performance of suppliers
Improves competitiveness
Increases prot of the company
Increases market share of the company
Reduces operating costs of the company

1.4412
1.2941
1.0147
1.1029
1.0882
1.1029
1.0588
1.0588
0.9118
0.8529
0.8676
0.7941
0.5882
0.3676
0.2500
0.2059

0.5829
0.8649
0.7430
0.9001
0.8933
0.9485
0.9285
0.9756
0.9421
0.9965
1.0496
1.0867
1.1748
1.1317
1.2017
1.2994

20.388
12.339
11.262
10.105
10.045
9.589
9.403
8.950
7.980
7.058
6.817
6.026
4.129
2.679
1.716
1.307

0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.009
0.091*
0.196*

N: 68.
*Do not reject null hypothesis at 95% level of signicance.
Source: A.M. Turk (2004).

Table 6
Disadvantages of ISO 9000 QMS
Disadvantages
Increases the documentation
Reduces the productivity of the company
Restricts the unique creativity of the company
Increases the operating costs of the company
Increases the amount of unnecessary procedures

Mean

Standard deviation

0.5441
1.1471
1.0882
0.1618
0.1470

1.0138
0.6293
0.8417
1.1410
1.2277

t-Statistic

p-Value

4.426
15.032
10.661
1.169
0.099

0.000
0.000
0.000
0.242*
0.922*

N: 68.
*Do not reject null hypothesis at 95% level of signicance.
Source: A.M. Turk (2004).

from the population mean. The variable of reduction in

the operating costs of the company is not signicantly
different from the population mean as a result of the Ttest. Other variables are meaningfully different from the
population mean. According to the results of the T-test,
the most important advantages of ISO 9000 QMS rms
are, respectively:

using the T-test. According to this test, the average of

increases the unnecessary procedures and increases
the operating cost of the company variables are not
signicantly different from the population mean. According to the results of the T-test, the rms do not
agree with the following claims:





ISO 9000 QMS reduces the productivity of the

company,
ISO 9000 QMS restricts the unique creativity of the
company.

it is a tool for enhancing the companys image,

it is a tool that improves the denitions of the
responsibilities in the company,
it increases communication with customers,
it improves companys operating procedures,
it improves the control on sub-contractor rms (Table
5). The rst three advantages determined by the rms
have obtained the highest scores in the T-test.

However, according to the T-test results, the rms

consider ISO 9000 QMS increases documentation as
a disadvantage in the transition to ISO 9000 QMS
(Table 6).

In the questionnaire survey, the rms have been asked

about their opinions on the disadvantages of having ISO
9000 QMS. The evaluations of the rms on the
disadvantages of ISO 9000 QMS have been analyzed

2.2.3. Experiences of construction firms with ISO 9000

In the questionnaire, the rms were asked about the
reasons for having ISO 9000 QMS. The evaluations on
the disadvantages of holding ISO 9000 certication have





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509

Table 7
Reasons for seeking ISO 9000 QMS certication
Reasons

Mean

Company desires entering the international construction market

It is compulsory for contract bidding
ISO 9000 certication will soon be mandatory
Certication is necessary for the betterment of the management system of the company
Company desires positive change and improvement
Certication improves the competitiveness in the internal market
Customer requests the certication
Other companies had attained or are seeking certication

1.7258
1.4677
1.1613
1.0806
0.7581
0.6935
0.4839
0.3871

Standard deviation

t-Statistic

p-Value

0.5483
0.8040
0.8530
0.9286
1.1262
1.0337
1.3274
1.2849

24.784
14.374
10.719
9.164
5.300
5.283
2.870
2.372

0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.006
0.021

N: 62.
Source: A.M. Turk (2004).

again been analyzed by using the T-test. Accordingly,

the reasons why the rms acquire ISO 9000 certicate
have been determined according to their order of
precedence as:

Table 8
Experiences of the companies related to ISO 9000 QMS certication
No

Item

V51

How long did it take the

company to be registered
after official application for
ISO 9000?
0 6 months
612 months
1224 months
More than 24 months
Have you ever used any
consulting service during
the ISO 9000 registration
process?
Yes
No
What was the approximate
cost of obtaining ISO 9000
registration? (including the
costs of consulting,
registration, costs of
internal restructuring of
company)
Less than US$50,000
Between US$50,000100,000
More than US$100,000
Have you been fully
satisfied after the
registration for ISO 9000?
Yes
No
Has the ISO 9000
registration increased the
companys volume of
contracts?
Yes
No





the company intends to enter the international

construction market,
it is compulsory for bidding contracts,
ISO 9000 certication will soon be mandatory,
certication is necessary for the betterment of the
management system of the company.

According to the T-test results, the scores obtained

from the rst three reasons are very high. In particular,
the score for the rst reason is considerably higher than
other reasons. The rms have considered that the reason
other rms have attained or are seeking certication
as not important for holding ISO 9000 certicates
(Table 7).
In total, 76.7% (46) of the surveyed rms have stated
that it takes the company between 0 and 6 months to be
registered after their ofcial application, 21.7% (13) of
the surveyed rms between 6 and 12 months and 1.6%
(1) of the surveyed rms between 12 and 24 months after
their ofcial application. 90.2% (55) of the surveyed
rms have received consulting service during the ISO
9000 registration process. In order to obtain ISO 9000
registration, 90.2% (55) of the rms have spent less than
US$ 50,000, 9.8% (6) have spent between US$
50,000100,000. In total, 56.5% (35) of the surveyed
rms consider that ISO 9000 certication has increased
their business volume. In total, 43.5% (27) of the rms
expressed that ISO 9000 QMS has not increased the
companys volume of contracts. 62.9% (39) of the
surveyed rms are not fully satised after the registration of ISO 9000, whereas 37.1% (23) of the surveyed
rms are (Table 8).
In the questionnaire survey, the rms have been asked
about the difculties encountered in the process of
attaining ISO 9000 QMS. The evaluations of the rms
about the difculties encountered in transition to ISO

V52

V53

V67

V68

Number of all
rms

46 (76.7a)
13 (21.7)
1 (1.6)

55 (90.2)
6 (9.8)

55 (90.2)
6 (9.8)

23 (37.1)
39 (62.9)

35 (56.5)
27 (43.5)

Source: A.M. Turk (2004).

a
Numbers in brackets in percentages.

9000 QMS have been analyzed again by using the T-test.

Accordingly, it has been discovered that the mean rating
of the variables, namely company operating proce-

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A.M. Turk / Building and Environment 41 (2006) 501511

Table 9
Problems confronted during the ISO 9000 certication process and implementation
Problems
Registration process is too lengthy
ISO 9000 certication has increased the expenses
The company management is not open to research and criticisms
Company management procedures have changed for implementing QMS
Lack of information about ISO 9000 QMS
ISO 9000 QMS is not appropriate for construction rms.
Volume of documentation and paperwork has increased
Company employees do not appreciate the QMS
Qualied employees are needed during registration process
Difculty in understanding ISO 9000 terminology
Company operating procedures have changed

Mean
1.1803
0.8226
0.9167
0.5636
0.4167
0.5000
0.2561
0.3710
0.1148
0.645
0.639

Standard deviation

t-Statistic

p-Value

0.8662
1.0792
1.3186
1.2585
1.0938
1.0000
0.8446
1.0010
1.3051
1.4127
1.3477

10.643
6.002
5.385
3.321
2.951
2.876
2.501
2.114
0.687
0.360
0.095

0.000
0.000
0.000
0.002
0.005
0.007
0.035
0.039
0.495*
0.720*
0.925*

N: 60.
*Do not reject null hypothesis at 95% level of signicance.
Source: A.M. Turk (2004).

dures have changed, there is a problem in understanding the ISO terminology and qualied employees are needed during the registration process, are not
signicantly different from the population mean. According to T-test results, the most important difculties
experienced by the rms in the process of attaining ISO
9000 QMS are determined as follows:






registration process is too lengthy,

ISO 9000 certication has increased expenses,
the companys management is not open to research
and criticism,
restructuring of the personnel system is necessary in
the rm to establish QMS (Table 9).

3. Conclusions and recommendations

3.1. Conclusions
It can be observed that the number of ISO 9000 QMS
certied construction rms in Turkey is low when
compared to other countries, particularly European
and Asian countries. An increase in this number will
improve the existing position of Turkish construction
rms in both the national and international market.
As stated in a survey of the literature, much research
has been carried out as to whether or not ISO 9000
QMS is appropriate for construction rms. Two
different opinions have emerged as an outcome of the
research. According to the results of the questionnaire,
most of the construction rms in Turkey think that ISO
9000 QMS has a positive effect on and is appropriate for
construction rms. It can be concluded as a result of the
questionnaire that the perceptions of the surveyed
construction rms regarding ISO 9000 QMS are not
related to the size of the rm or as to whether the rm

has been awarded contracts in the international market.

This shows that the surveyed construction rms
generally have a positive approach to ISO 9000 QMS.
Examples in the international literature indicate that
most of the construction rms attain this certication
either because their customers have requested it or have
made it a condition. The construction rms in Turkey
have attained ISO 9000 QMS certication for the
purpose of entry into the international market, as a
requirement for bidding on contracts and understanding
that it will become obligatory in the near future.
This shows a similarity with other international examples, and is linked with Turkeys being in a transition
period (in the process of accession to the European
Union).
According to the construction rms surveyed in
Turkey, the advantages of having ISO 9000 QMS are:
enhancement of the companys image, better denition
of responsibilities in the company, better communication with the customer, improvement in the companys
operating procedures, and providing tighter controls on
the sub-contractors that the rms work with. In the
examples of other countries, in addition to such
advantages, benets such as an increase in competitive
power, protection of international market shares by the
rm, and the convenience in contracting projects have
been dened. In this respect, Turkey, as an example,
displays a discrepancy. As a matter of fact, the abovementioned advantages are not considered to be extra
and important advantages for the surveyed rms.
Additionally, nearly half of the surveyed rms have
stated that having ISO 9000 QMS certication does not
increase their business volume.
According to the construction rms surveyed in
Turkey, the most important disadvantage of attaining
ISO 9000 QMS certication is the increase in documentation. This result is similar to other studies in the
international literature.

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511

3.2. Recommendations

References

Taking into consideration the literature review and

questionnaire results, the following recommendations
have been formed for effective application of ISO 9000
QMS in construction rms and for future research:

[1] Arditi D, Gunaydin HM. Total quality management in the

construction process. International Journal of Project Management in Engineering 1997;124(3):194203.
[2] Chini AR. Understanding quality assurance/quality control in the
constructed project. Who provides inspection. In: Chini AR,
editor. Reston, VA: ASCE; 1999. p. 310.
[3] Arditi D, Gunaydin HM. Perceptions of process quality in
building projects. Journal of Management in Engineering, ASCE
1999;15(2):4353.
[4] Landin A. ISO 9001 within the Swedish construction sector.
Construction Management and Economics, London 2000;
18(5).
[5] Quazi HA, Hong CW, Meng CT. Impact of ISO 9000 certication
on quality management practices: a comparative study. Total
Quality Management, Abington 2002;13(1).
[6] Pheng LS, Wee D. Improving maintenance and reducing building
defects through ISO 9000. Journal of Quality in Maintenance
Engineering, Bradford 2001;7(1).
[7] Pheng LS, Abeyegoonasekera B. Integrating buildability in ISO
9000 quality management systems: case study of a condominium
project. Building and Environment 2001;36:299312.
[8] Dissanayaka SM, Kumaraswamy MM, Karim K, Marosszeky M.
Evaluating outcomes from ISO 9000-certied quality systems of
Hong Kong constructors. Total Quality Management, Abingdon
2001;12(1):29.
[9] Ofori G, Gang G, Briffet C. Implementing environmental
management systems in construction: lessons from quality
systems. Building and Environment 2002;37:1397407.
[10] Yates JK, Aniftos S. International standards and construction.
Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, ASCE
1997;123(2):12737.
[11] Yates JK, Aniftos S. International standards: the US construction industrys competitiveness. Cost Engineering 1996;38(7):
327.
[12] Chini AR, Valdez HE. ISO 9000 and the US construction
industry. Journal of Management in Engineering, ASCE
2003;19(2):6977.
[13] Bubshait AA, Al-Atiq TH. ISO 9000 quality standards in
construction. Journal of Management in Engineering, ASCE
1999;15(2):4353.
[14] Chung HW. Understanding quality assurance in construction: a
practical guide to ISO 9000. London: E&F Spon; 1999.
[15] Nee PA. ISO 9000 in construction. New York: Wiley; 1996.
[16] Fairweather V. Understanding ISO. Civil Engineering
1994;64(2):5961.
[17] Insaat, muteahhitlik, muhendislik ve musavirlik hizmetleri ozel
ihtisas komisyonu raporu, DPT-Sekizinci Bes Yillik Kalkinma
Raporu, Ankara, 2001 [in Turkish].
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[22] The Top International Contractors. Engineering News Record,
The McGraw-Hill Companies. 2004;253(8):42.

It will be appropriate for ISO to prepare a guide both

for the rms and for the certication bodies and
auditors in order to apply ISO 9000 QMS more
effectively for the rms in the construction industry.
It can be worked out so that documentation is
reduced or that more effective methods are found
on a project basis. These are the most common
complaints in the application of ISO 9000 QMS. This
problem can be overcome with the effective use of
information technology.
Activities like explaining the importance and advantages of QMS for medium- and small-scale rms in
the construction industry, granting incentives for the
application of QMS, and even granting credit facilities for rms to set up the system will be encouraged.
In the application of construction projects, the effective
and common application of QMS particularly in
developing countries may reduce problems such as the
lack of supervision in construction activities.
In the global construction market, an increase in the
number of rms having QMS will both reduce the
project costs and develop the potential of awarding
contracts to the construction rms from underdeveloped and/or developing countries.
More comprehensive studies must be carried out with
consideration to other industries rendering service to
the construction industry, such as the construction
materials industry, by treating the construction
industry in Turkey on a broader scope.
The problems caused by the application of ISO 9000
QMS standards together with other ISO 14000 and ISO
18000 standards, the application of which is important
for the construction industry, the common characteristics of the above-mentioned three different standards
and application capabilities must be investigated.
Studies are required to be carried out in order to
determine the performance criteria necessary to
develop QMS performances of rms holding ISO
9000 certicates.

Acknowledgements
The assistance of Assistant Prof. Dr. Sevkiye Sence
Turk is gratefully acknowledged.