Investigating Factors Influencing Building Materials Selection in Nigerian Construction Industry

Abstract

A building is a complex system and selecting appropriate building materials for a building project will have significant impact on the overall performance of building throughout its life cycle. This research therefore aim is to deepen the knowledge of building materials selection within Nigerian building sector, a task which is traditionally performed by architects. The research approach comprised of a questionnaire survey of the registered architects practicing in Nigerian construction industry. Purposive sampling techniques using maximum variation strategy were adopted for selecting the target survey respondents. The factors used to measure the selection of building materials are client’s demand, overall cost, climatic compliance, and maintenance demand. The Predictive Analysis Software ({PASW}) Statistics 17.0 (formerly {SPSS} statistics) was employed to analyse information from the survey. Empirical results indicate that maintenance demand is the most important factor that determines the selection of materials irrespective of the choice of client and climate. However, cost occupies a prominent role in the decision process. It also shows that most architects are not fully aware about the role of climate in determining the life cycle of materials in tropical environments. The compliance of materials to ever-changing climate does not constitute a major factor in the selection of materials in Nigeria.