Causes, effects and potential measures of cost deviations in high-rise building projects in Egypt

Cost deviation is a global issue that has negative impacts on projects, stakeholders and the industry. Egypt, a developing nation with the rising demand for high-rise buildings is also plagued with the issue. It is inevitable that high-rise buildings cost more than low-rise buildings, further accentuating the needs to study cost deviation from all angles, which was previously absent. Therefore, this study aims to provide an overall perspective (causes, effects and measures) of cost deviation in high-rise building projects in Egypt by adopting both quantitative (questionnaire survey) and qualitative (brain storming sessions) approaches. The questionnaire survey has been administered among various construction practitioners (project manager, consultant, quantity surveyor, site engineer) with experiences in high-rise building projects, while the brainstorming session involved expert panels from the industry. Findings from the 106 questionnaires have revealed inflation as the major cause of cost deviation that has the most effect on profit loss for the contractor. Government and project-based measures with great collaboration has been proposed to address the issue. The overall perspective (causes, effects, measures) provided in this study would be of interest to the local construction stakeholders, as well as foreign investors towards improving the cost performance of high-rise building projects in Egypt.