Success factors of standardization: An empirical study

Abstract

The complexity in plant EPC (Engineering, Procurement, Construction) industry has increased significantly over the last decade. One common approach to manage this complexity is the implementation of standardization programs. Within this paper critical success factors (CSFs) of standardization programs in the German plant EPC industry are evaluated. Utilizing these success factors, EPC companies are able to implement more efficient standardization programs. The evaluation of the success factors was done based on a two-step multi-method approach. In a first step existing CSFs in the plant EPC business were collected using qualitative research methods. Afterwards they were tested for their suitability for standardization programs using expert interviews. Finally, nine CSFs could be determined which were evaluated in a quantitative online survey among experts with experience in the plant EPC industry. "Reusability" ,"know-how" and "continuous improvement" turned out to be the most important CSFs. We further observed that the ranking of the CSFs is depending on the respective domain within the plant EPC industry. The CSFs "flexibility", "standardization in all stages of the lifecycle" and "continuous improvement" were considered rather domain- specific, while the CSF "reusability" has been proven to be both: domain-independent and important in all domains.