CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
Background of the Study
Construction of a project consists of the integration of professionals, contractors and client(s) and the other participants, manufacturers, suppliers and government bodies.          Walker (2002) affirmed that construction industry is essentially a service industry whose responsibility is to convert the plan and specifications prepared by engineers and/or architects into shed projects. Construction includes activities such as alteration, building, relocation, decoration, demolition, renovation maintenance, repairs of buildings, roads, structures, sewers water or gas main pipelines, transmission lines, tunnels, bridges canals and other associated works.    Atkin (2000), stated that “facility management is the management of building services. It is a relatively new profession in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria”. Adedeji (2005) affirmed “facilities management has been in existence in Nigeria for the past ten years on professional level with the introduction of International Facilities Management Association (IFMA) in Nigeria”.
The International Facilities Management Association (IFMA) defined Facilities Management  (FM) as “the integration of processes within an organisation to maintain and develop the agreed services, which support and improve the effectiveness of its primary activities. The British Institute of facilities management has a wider scope of meaning than simply “the management of buildings and services” it defined facilities management as the integration of multi-disciplinary activities within the built environment and the management of their impact upon people and the workplace”. The definition above offers a slightly simpler description of the term facilities management. A well simplified definition of facilities management was propounded by Ramsey (2001). He stated that “facilities management is a process of managing al the multiple services that enable a facility to become a profitable investment for its owners and a productive environment for its users”. Facility management depends upon the skill, vision, experience of the practitioners Nnachi (2007) and Okezie (2007). DeLucy (1989) stated that “the facility manager can then make all necessary decisions concerning systems, services and supplies, so that the facility can be run at a productive level for owner users”
Facilities management as an antecedent in property management  and maintenance could be said to mean “the supervising, directing and the controlling of interest in landed property with a view to obtaining the possible maximum return, which in most cases is financial but could also be political, social status, prestige or any management objectives, which an investor chooses (Obelender, 2000). It is on this background that this study was   carried out.