Abstract
The construction industry contributes to a country's economic growth, society, and environment by constructing, modifying, and improving living conditions. However, the industry is regarded as reactive and performing sub-optimally in terms of innovation, especially in terms of facilitating improved sustainability performance. This dissertation examines the status quo of sustainable construction practices implementation, identifies the challenges, ascertains the benefits, investigates the impact, and identifies mitigation of challenges hindering optimal implementation of sustainable construction practices in the construction industry. Both primary and secondary sources were used to acquire data for the study. A literature review was utilised to collect secondary data. The primary data was collected through a quantitative survey employing structured questionnaires distributed to construction professionals in the Johannesburg, South Africa, construction industry and administered on their professional websites. It was ensured that the selected responders are currently engaged in a construction project and are registered with the Built Environment Professional Council. There was a total of 152 questionnaires received, with 69.7% being male and 30.3% being female. Exploratory factor analysis and other statistical methods were used to evaluate returned questionnaires. The results demonstrated that improved productivity and quality of life factors had a major impact on the status quo of sustainable construction practices. Capital cost, information gathering, design process, construction process, lack of awareness among stakeholders, and lack of legislative incentive were challenges in implementing sustainable construction practices. The data revealed that implementing sustainable construction practices resulted in increased productivity, improved health, waste minimisation, better use of materials, and noise avoidance. Promoting energy efficiency and design, increasing health and safety measures, improving the quality of life, increasing job satisfaction, and improving indoor air quality all have an impact on the economic growth and environmental stability of South Africa. Similarly, the study revealed that energy, water, and material conservation help minimise the challenges associated with implementing sustainable construction practices in South Africa. Finally, it was recommended that the industry develop industrial measurement standards to aid in analysing and describing resources utilised in construction. The industry should also develop a mechanism to reap the economic, social, and environmental benefits of sustainable construction in terms of reduced life cycle costs, improved quality of life, and promoting human health.
Key words: Construction Industry, Environmental impact, Social impact, Material conservation, Renewable energy, Water conservation, Innovative strategies