Factors affecting the capacity and capability of the commercial building sector in New Zealand

The construction sector also appears to have suffered a significant impact from the COVID-19 pandemic over the past three years. Therefore, properly identifying the capacity and capability of the NZ construction industry and improving construction resilience is crucial. Hence, this study focuses on the commercial building sector by conducting an in-depth case study on recently completed commercial buildings in NZ. The study was carried out through 13 semi-structured interviews with the stakeholders of the selected case who had sound knowledge and experience on the case. According to the study, 90% of the participants pointed out that proper communication and team coordination lead to better project management and project success. It can mitigate various challenges together as a team. Further, private sector clients are in favour of having the contractor involved as early as possible to improve the buildability and strengthen the stakeholder relationship. Therefore, having proper pre-contractor management leads to a successful post-contract delivery. The study contributes knowledge to model the capacity and capability of the building sector to identify shocks and stresses faced by the sector. In order to map the future construction demand in the commercial sector, challenges and mitigation actions must be considered. Although the study was carried out using a case study from NZ, the findings can be generalised to the commercial building sector in other countries.