Prioritizing Delay Causes in Construction Projects in Mazandaran Province (Iran) and Presenting Solutions for Improving it

Delays are an inevitable part of construction projects, and the evaluation of its effect on construction projects requires a reliable method for investigating delay causes and effects due to great complexities. In this study, we have investigated delay causes in the important projects in Mazandaran Province, prioritized factors by distributing questionnaires to construction specialists in construction projects and calculated their average weights. The effective criteria in prioritizing project elements were identified in the delays of three-factor construction projects by determining the main factors in delay. In this research, multi-criteria decision making methods of ANP & Topsis-Fuzzy were used to determine priority in project elements for creating delays in construction projects for the first time. After prioritizing, using multi-criteria decision making methods, the result showed that the employer is the main factor in creating delay in construction projects. Consequently, the main solution for decreasing the created delays in Iran is the proper prediction of credit allocation.