Effects of Partnering Elements: An Exploratory Case Study

Partnering elements have become more common in Norwegian construction projects over the last decades. Partnering, as a project delivery method, shares similarities with the lean perspective as they both use available elements to achieve a collaborative project. The LC principles are often illustrated in terms of three fundamental elements (commercial, organizational, and operating system). This aligns with how this paper has categorised partnering, into contractual-, organisational-, and cultural elements. Consequently, this paper contributes to knowledge about the effects of partnering elements by answering the two research questions: 1) Which elements are used in partnering projects, and 2) What are the effects of these elements. An exploratory case study of a partnering project was carried out to examine the partnering elements and their effects. A combination of literature review, document study and semi-structured interviews were used data collection. The findings reveal that the contractual-, organisational-, and cultural elements are aligned with the LC triangle. There is a potential when implementing lean elements in partnering. However, there is a risk for partnering projects falling into a traditional approach in the actual delivery. The paper concludes that more attention should be paid to the effects of organisational and cultural elements in partnering projects.