# Developing Internet Online Procurement Frameworks for Construction Firms
## 1 Introduction  
Developments in the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) have greatly influenced the way organizations conduct their businesses, particularly concerning supply chain management [1]. Many organizations have invested large sums of money on supply chain management systems to improve supply chain efficiency and to attain a competitive advantage [2; 3], especially in the current era of the fourth industrial revolution (Industry 4.0) [4]. Among these efforts, electronic business (e-business) and electronic commerce (e-commerce) are the most cost-effective and time-saving [5] through digitalization technologies [6]. In line with this notion, digital transformation significantly strengthens the leading edge of organizations [7] and adds value through enhancements in supply chain efficiency and effectiveness [8; 9; 10].  
In the e-Business environment, one of the most prominent business-to-business (B2B) applications to have received worldwide attention is electronic procurement (e-procurement) [11; 12; 13]. This kind of application streamlines the corporate purchasing process by eliminating traditional paper-based documents such as purchase orders and requisition forms [14]. The e-procurement system enables enterprise users to gain direct access to the supply system by conducting purchasing electronically. E-procurement involves integrating Internet-based technologies to manage the upstream portion of the supply chain to reduce costs, shorten the time and raise productivity [15].  
Notwithstanding the significant value of e-procurement to business practices, low adoption of e-procurement has been reported by various research across different industries (e.g., [PERSON] et al. [16] in hospitality; [PERSON] and [PERSON] [10] in healthcare; [PERSON] et al. [1] in retail business; and [PERSON] and [PERSON] [17] in construction). It is also worthwhile noting that little headway has been made in research pertaining to architecture engineering and construction (AEC) firms, which has led to the limited development of research frameworks to uncover the critical success factors (CSFs) responsible for e-procurement implementation [18; 19]. Recent studies in the construction industry of developing countries by [PERSON] and [PERSON] [20] in Saudi Arabia, [PERSON] et al. [21] and [PERSON] et al. [22] in Nigeria, and [PERSON] and [PERSON] [23] in South Africa further echoed the limited use of e-procurement practices. Over in Canada, the majority of respondents surveyed perceived unreliability of technologies as the most critical disadvantage [24]. In the case of Malaysian construction industry, e-procurement is still underutilized as compared to other developed economies [25]. To accelerate the industry-wide diffusion of e-procurement and leverage on its benefits owing to significant technological advancements today, the sensible approach is to examine the CSFs in AEC firms empirically with the following research questions: What are the organizational CSFs specific to construction organizations? and How do these organizational CSFs affect e-procurement in terms of project management success and user satisfaction? Thus, the current study contributes to the literature by proposing an e-procurement implementation success (ePIS) framework for user satisfaction to assist stakeholders in making more healthy and robust decisions and strategic preparations before embarking on any system initiative. Although the focus is on AEC firms, the findings offer useful insights to other project-based industries (PPIs) such as defense, ICT, aerospace, among others.