TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT, VOL. 12, NO. 1, 2001, 29±40 Evaluating outcomes from ISO 9000-certi®ed quality systems of Hong Kong constructors S. M. Dissanayaka, 1 M. M. Kumaraswamy , 1 K. Karim 2 & M. Marosszeky 2 1 Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong & 2 Australian Centre for Construction Innovation, University of New South Wales abstract ISO 9000-certi®ed quality systems have increased rapidly in many industries and countries, including Hong Kong. A study was recently launched to identify the motivators, perceived advantages/bene®ts and disadvantages/drawbacks of implementing ISO 9000-certi®ed quality systems in Hong Kong construction organizations. The experiences of 33 construction contractors indicate that although net bene®ts are perceived, the main motivator behind the implementation of ISO 9000-certi®ed quality systems is to meet customer prerequisites, such as to qualify for public works tender lists. The principal perceived bene®ts of ISO 9000-certi®ed quality systems for constructors include more systematic record keeping, improved internal communication and enhanced competitiveness of the company. On the other hand, the principal drawbacks are perceived to be more paperwork, increased time spent in management and higher overall project cost. A high degree of agreement was observed between medium and large constructors on the ranking of the relative strengths of such outcomes. Common strategies may thus be formulated to enhance the net bene®ts from a constructor’s viewpoint. Introduction The ISO 9000 series of quality management standards was ®rst published by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) in 1987, and ®rst revised in 1994 to re¯ect application in all industries. To date, more than 120 countries have adopted the ISO 9000 series as their national quality standard, and about 200 000 certi®cates have been issued world-wide (Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency (HKQAA) Homepage). HKQAA (the leading third-party certi®cation body in Hong Kong) has issued more than 1300 ISO 9000 certi®cates. Table 1 shows a breakdown between ISO-certi®ed companies in general, as against those in construction, over the last few years in Hong Kong. It seems that the number of ISO-certi®ed companies has increased signi®cantly over the last 5 years, both in the construction industry and as a whole. Furthermore, the construction industry subsector (i.e. contractors, specialist subcontractors and suppliers) contributes almost 39% of the total of companies certi®ed to ISO 9000 by the HKQAA in Hong Kong. With the introduction of the ISO 9000 certi®cation for quality systems to Hong Kong Correspondence : M. M. Kumaraswamy, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong. ISSN 0954-4127 print/ISSN 1360-0613 online/00/010029-12 2001 Taylor & Francis Ltd DOI: 10.1080/09544120020010075