Selecting suitable procurement system for steel building construction

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to select a suitable procurement method for steel building construction in Sri Lanka following a systematic method which weigh, both procurement selection factors and existing procurement systems.Design/methodology/approachAn abductive research stance is followed in this empirical study. Procurement selection factors were selected through a critical literature review which was followed by a quantitative questionnaire survey. The collected data were analysed using descriptive statistical analysis and relative important index.FindingsThe critical literature review outlined 46 procurement selection factors, out of which 26 factors were very important in steel building procurement selection. Short construction period and higher constructability of design are ranked at the top with the highest priority rating factors. Management-oriented procurement system was selected as the most appropriate procurement system for steel building constructions within the Sri Lankan context.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is limited to widely use three procurement systems in Sri Lankan construction industry. Yet, the process followed in selecting the most appropriate procurement system could be applied for other contexts. The implications of the study are mainly identifying management-oriented procurement as the most suitable procurement method for steel building construction in Sri Lanka.Practical implicationsThe systematic procedure of procurement method selection for steel building construction may use in the Sri Lankan construction industry to limit the resource loss due to wrong selection of procurement.Originality/valueA study which critically and comprehensively presenting a procurement selection process for steel building construction is not recorded in Sri Lanka prior to this study.