Introduction

1–001 Delayed completion is not unique to the construction industry. It also happens in aerospace projects, shipbuilding,1 IT, oil and gas, rail transport, petrochemical and process plants and civil engineering projects. Nor is delay unique to a particular culture, or jurisdiction: the same things happen in the United Kingdom as occur in Australia, Hong Kong, India, Pakistan, the forests of Peru, Russia, South Africa, the Middle East and the United States. In fact, it happens in all industries, jurisdictions and cultures in which a unique product, the character of which is expected to change, is created over a period of time by a combination of specialised resources.