Factors influencing design productivity in Denmark: implications for enhanced design management

An increase in design complexity, participants, and technologies, has heightened the focus on general productivity and design productivity within the architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) industry. However, measuring design productivity through traditional means has proven insufficient. To know more about what constitutes high-design productivity, 25 factors, affecting design productivity, were identified and ranked based on survey answers from 80 respondents working with architecture and engineering in Denmark. The statistical analysis revealed a close ranking of a multitude of the 25 factors, with factors contained in the management factor category being significantly more important than labour and technical factors ranking 2 and 3, while project factors ranked 4, and the external factors ranked 5. However, to manage design productivity efficiently, this study showed that focusing on only management factors is not enough, and that various interrelationships are detectable between the 25 factors quantitatively and qualitatively. This study adds to the existing body of knowledge by focusing on the underlying factors affecting design productivity, providing guidance for project managers on where to focus to manage and improve design productivity.