Journal of Scientific Engineering Advances

Abstract

Background: In developing Sub-Saharan infrastructure economies, road construction management is sys tematically undermined by cost escalation and budget volatility. While current project management research focuses heavily on external economic factors, contract variations, and materials inflation, this paper isolates the financial influence of engineering management choices in the pre-contract phase. Specifically, this study introduces and validates the Geospatial Control and Risk Management Index (GCRMI), a novel engineering management metric designed to quantify the precision, scoping maturity, and governance stability of early engineering surveying workflows.

Methods: Grounded in Project Management Theory (PMBOK) and Risk Management Principles, the paper establishes the structural mechanism through which low-fidelity geospatial scoping propagates into systemic technical debt and financial variations during active construction. Using a mixed-methods empirical re search design, quantitative data were gathered from a stratified random sample of 142 registered infrastruc ture asset managers, cost control experts, and surveyors across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, alongside a comprehensive financial audit of four federal highway case studies.

Results: Relative Importance Index (RII) statistics show that earthwork volume estimation failures (RII = 0.913) and baseline control point discrepancies (RII = 0.862) act as primary internal cost drivers. Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) regression analysis confirms that early-stage geospatial risk management practices di rectly predict project cost stability (R² = 0.894, p = 0.023). The model demonstrates that a 10% improvement in a project's GCRMI rating corresponds to a statistically significant 4.32% reduction in final contract cost variance.

Conclusion: These findings demonstrate that engineering surveying is an actionable financial control mechanism rather than an administrative line item. Future strategies must incorporate mandatory geospatial compliance benchmarks before contract award.