Suitability of Cloud Computing to the Sri Lankan Construction Industry

Abstract

Construction industry is growing at a significant rate, while acting as one of the most information-intensive industries. However, project overruns and completion of project objectives are still being discussed as major challenges. To address this issue, cloud computing has become a modern technological solution that enables access to up-to-date and onsite information in the construction industry. However, in the Sri Lankan context, efforts for the application of cloud computing is significantly less, and there is a need for innovative ways to integrate cloud computing to the construction industry. Hence, this research is aimed at investigating the potential development and effectiveness of cloud computing as an ICT application for better communication and collaboration between different parties in construction projects. Preliminary interviews and expert opinion surveys were conducted in a qualitative exploration of the phenomenon. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted among experts in the information technology industry and experts in the construction industry. Expert opinion surveys' data was analysed through the content analysis technique. Findings revealed that, out of the three cloud service models (Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)), only SaaS model was relevant to the Sri Lankan construction industry. Accordingly, several cloud based SaaS applications were identified under 'general purpose applications' and 'construction industry specific applications. The driving sources for the cloud computing implementation were identified under organizational and technological perspectives. According to the findings, 9th International Conference on Management and Economics – ISBN 978-955-1507-72-5 429 business growth' was identified as the most important organizational driving source, while 'cost effectiveness' was identified as the most important technological driving source for the construction industry in Sri Lanka.