Risk management is a key concern in public-private partnership (PPP) projects and the efficient allocation of risk remains problematic. Previous studies on PPP practices have documented the prevalence of inefficiency in risk allocation. Nevertheless, the nature of PPP risk misallocation has not been quantitatively described and verified. This study examines risk allocation in the Chinese water sector as it supports the highest number of PPP projects. Based on the expertise of 32 senior practitioners, statistical analysis is used to contrast where risks ought to lie in order to maximize risk mitigation efficiency with where such risks actually lie. The results confirm that current risk allocation practices are far from ideal, with the implication that current practices play a significant role in project failure. Details within the data provide insight into how practitioners should modify current risk allocation practices to better achieve risk management optimization. The lesson learned from this study can be transferred to projects in other emerging PPP markets.

A cooperative attitude is essential for successful teamwork in construction. The levels of conflict and dispute on construction projects are conceptualized as forms of cooperative/uncooperative attitude. A theoretical model demonstrates how conflict intensity, contractors' dispute tendencies and six identified constructs of organizational justice interact with and relate to each other. The model is tested using a structural equation modelling technique with partial least‐squares estimation. It uses survey data obtained from 41 contractors regarding their project experience. The results suggest that perceptions about organizational justice either promote or hinder cooperative behaviour in the construction project delivery process. Organizational justice, or at least people's perceptions of it, influenced 38% of conflict intensity levels, and altered 46% of contractors' tendencies to dispute. Perceptions about the quantum of claims approved (favourability of the outcome and the perceived fairness of the outcome) influenced the levels of conflict and dispute. However, the way people are treated (quality of treatment) and the way claims are administered (quality of decision‐making) have the largest impact on the model developed. Cooperative behaviour can be promoted on projects by managing construction claims in a proactive manner and by proper implementation of the claims mechanism.

A pre‐tender building cost estimate is an important piece of information when making decisions at the project planning and design stage. The important project characteristics influencing the accuracy of pre‐tender building cost estimates are examined and practical improvement for increasing the accuracy of estimates are considered. A quantitative approach is used to address the research problem. Analysis of data from 56 projects and from a postal questionnaire survey of 102 quantity surveying firms suggests that the accuracy of pre‐tender building cost estimates varies according to project size and principal structural material. When eight identified project characteristics are controlled in a multiple regression analysis, the accuracy of estimates is influenced by project size. The estimates of smaller projects are more biased than the estimates of larger projects. It was discovered that pre‐tender building costs are more often overestimated than are underestimated. Overestimated forecasts are incorrect by a larger amount than underestimated forecasts. Data analysis also revealed that the accuracy of pre‐tender building cost estimates has not improved over time. The majority of the respondents are somewhat dissatisfied with the accuracy of estimates in the industry. Probability estimation and simulation of past estimates, reducing quantity surveying and cost engineering skill turnover, incorporating market sentiments into estimates, early involvement of the quantity surveyor at the brief stage, and proper documentation of experience gained in the estimation of projects should help firms increase the accuracy of estimates for new projects.

In the last decade, China has implemented more public–private partnership (PPP) projects in the water sector compared to other sectors. However, efficient management of risks in these projects remains problematic. While there have been many studies that have examined risks associated with PPPs in China, the experience of local governments with risks has received little or no attention in the literature. Moreover, the stages at which the risks are significant and how these risks are interrelated have not been researched. This paper examines risks as experienced from the local government’s perspective and how they manifest across five PPP stages: (1) feasibility, (2) procurement, (3) construction, (4) operation, and (5) transfer. The interrelationship between the risks across the PPP stages is also examined. Data was collected via questionnaire surveys and interviews, and it was analyzed using quantitative and qualitative analysis. The findings reveal critical risk for local governments and how their impacts vary across project stages. Some of the risks influence other risks both within and across the five PPP stages. The findings provide significant insight into the dynamic nature risks in PPP water projects, which has important implications for practitioners when developing risk mitigation strategies.

Delay and disruption claims often generate conflict and contract dispute in the delivery of building and civil engineering projects. If construction delay claims conflict can be avoided or mitigated, there could be substantial financial savings on projects. This study explores the effect of precontract negotiation as a means of avoiding or mitigating delay and disruption claims conflict. The data collection instrument was a structured questionnaire administered face to face on 41 contractors’ personnel on 41 completed projects in Singapore. The data were analyzed using structural modeling with partial least squares estimation approach. The results indicate that when the contractors received an unfavorable outcome from the contract administrator’s decision on their claims for delay, the intensity of conflict was lower when there was precontract negotiation and precontract agreement regarding the rules for quantifying and assessing the impact of anticipated delays than when there was none. It was also disco...