Nezambe, BruceLaryea, SamuelGovender, NeilLaryea, SamuelLi, BaizhanEssah, Emmanuel AduMensah, SarfoLiu, HongYao, Runming2024-10-062024-10-062024-07Nezambe, Laryea, and Govender. (2024). Perceptions of tender document quality and its impact on construction estimates In: Laryea, S. et al. (Eds) Proceedings of the WABER SuDBE Conference, 30 to 31 July 2024, Johannesburg, South Africa 1151-1158.978-0-7961-6032-4978-0-7961-6032-4 (e-book)https://hdl.handle.net/10539/41378This paper was presented at the Proceedings of the WABER SuDBE 2024 Conference, 30th – 31st July 2024, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.Construction experts have noted the persistent concern about the quality of tender documents and its impact on the construction sector. Poor specification writing continues to be a weak link in the information chain that degrades the quality of tender documents and causes disputes, particularly in a competitive market where construction professionals strictly interpret the documents to prepare a competitive bid. The impact of tender document quality on the accuracy of project estimates is assessed to determine the determinants of good tender-quality documents. Additionally, interventions that can be implemented to improve tender document quality and the implications of poor tender document quality were also analyzed. Qualitative data was collected from construction professionals using an interview. Data was analyzed by Atlas-ti using thematic analysis where six key themes were extracted. The study concluded that poor quality tender documents compromise the accuracy of project estimates and delivery of projects within the South African construction industry. The consequences of poor tender document quality included reduced project profitability, incomplete projects, project termination due to funding issues, misunderstanding of boundaries, misalignment of the programme, increased costs and a negative impact on construction estimates.en©2024 University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.© Copyright The copyright for papers in this publication belongs to the authors of the papers.Construction professionalsProject estimatesProject qualityProject scheduleTender documentsSDG-9: Industry, innovation and infrastructureConference ProceedingsUniversity of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg0000-0001-6605-208X