Purpose The COVID-19 pandemic drastically changed safety measures in every industry, including the construction industry. Thus, the construction companies have instituted safety measures at the construction sites to curve the disease’s spread among the workforce. This paper aims to examine the challenges encountered by construction firms in implementing COVID-19 safety measures at construction sites. Design/methodology/approach A qualitative research approach was adopted for this study using open-ended interview questions to solicit data from 19 construction professionals currently working on a construction project in South Africa. Content analysis with the assistance of an Excel spreadsheet was used to analyse the data collected. Findings The findings indicate that there are numerous challenges such as ignorance of COVID-19, the supply of poor personal protective equipment (PPEs) by contractors, lack of compliance, sanitising construction materials, difficulty in sharing tools and equipment, public transport usage by workers, superstition (COVID-19 is for a particular group of people), complying with social distancing rules, among others in the implementation of the COVID-19 safety measure at the construction site to curb the spread of the disease among the workers. These challenges have, therefore, hampered their effort to strictly adhere to the safety measures in accordance with the COVID-19 safety protocol at the project sites currently under construction. Research limitations/implications The interviewees were construction professionals working in the South African construction industry during the COVID-19 period. Practical implications The implication is that, due to the challenges faced in implementing the COVID-19 safety measures, workers on the construction site are not adequately protected from contracting COVID-19. The workers may thus contract the disease at the project sites and transmit it to their families and vice versa, which may have further implications on the spread of the disease within the communities and society. Originality/value The study has identified implementation challenges of the COVID-19 safety measures at construction sites of which the construction stakeholders must institute measures to overcome since COVID-19 has become part of our daily life. The study also recommends some preventive measures to the owners of construction companies to help overcome or minimise these COVID-19 safety implementation hurdles to minimise the spread of the disease among the construction site workers.

Technologies such as virtual reality (VR), online databases, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Building Information Modelling (BIM), Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), 4 D Computer-Aided Design (4 D CAD), wearable robotics have been adopted to improve construction site health and safety. However, little attempt has been made to map global research on construction health and safety technologies. Therefore, this paper conducts a review of technologies for construction health and safety management to reveal emerging research trends. A bibliometric review adopting a two-step literature selection method was conducted to compile relevant publications from the Scopus database. In total, 240 related papers were examined. VOSviewer was used to develop a co-occurrence network based on the bibliographic data obtained. The analysis focussed on co-authorship per country, country/region distribution, the number of publications annually, publication source and source and trend of research topics. Findings revealed that emerging trends in construction health and safety technologies research focussed on project health and safety design and planning, visualisation and image processing for construction projects, digital technologies for project monitoring, information management and Internet of Things, automation and robotic systems, health and safety and accident prevention and structure evaluation.

COVID-19 pandemic has become a global health issue that is ravaging every aspect of human life. Various countries, thus, institute many measures to prevent the spread of the disease among the citizenry. This article investigates measures that are put in place at construction project sites to curb the spread of COVID-19 among construction site workers. An open-ended questionnaire was used as an instrument to collect qualitative data from construction companies. A purposive sampling method was used to distribute the interview questions. The collected data were analyzed with content analysis. The findings show that most construction companies have instituted prescribed and appropriate measures to curb the spread of COVID-19 on-site. Moreover, some construction companies had implemented extra measures and developed new protocols to help mitigate the spread of COVID-19 on-site. However, few construction companies were lacking in the provision of some of the recommended measures. The study identified three categories of measures (i.e. screening, site access and handling of material and equipment deliveries on-site) where improvement is required. Construction companies could use the recommendations provided to improve upon the approach adopted to curb the spread of COVID-19 on-site. The study could also inform policymakers on COVID-19 measures that are unsatisfactorily implemented on site for which more attention and oversight is required. Research on construction site health and safety measures during this COVID-19 season are still being developed. Thus, this article contributes to advancing the body of knowledge in this area of study. Data were collected from grades 6 to 9 construction firms; therefore, the research findings may not be applied to smaller construction firms. A study that focuses on lower grades is recommended.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to develop a prioritisation framework that can guide the provision and management of on-campus student housing facility (SHF) services of southern Ghana Universities. Design/methodology/approach The paper adopted a phenomenological research strategy. Data was collected by means of focus group discussions (FGDs); a total of ten FGDs were conducted. Observations were also done during the site visit to augment the FGDs. The data were analysed thematically. Findings The study found that some services are perceived as “extremely important” and “basic” while others are seen as “unimportant” and “indifferent”. Services including; electricity, water, security, internet, cleaning service, maintenance service, generator, ventilation (fan), health service, library service, electric socket, study furniture, refuse collection, pest control and fire extinguisher were perceived by students as “extremely important”. However, not all of these services were perceived as “basic” requirements. Practical implications The framework can be used as a guide by facility and hostel managers to effectively prioritise and manage the services required in a university SHF. Moreover, when designing, constructing and adapting student housing facilities, the framework can be used as a guide to ensure that all critical services are provided in the student housing facilities. Originality/value Although several studies have been conducted on student housing, studies that specifically focuses on the services required in a SHF and the prioritisation of such services is lacking. This study combines students’ requirements, importance levels of requirements, and classification of requirements to develop a prioritisation system for student housing services.

PurposeCOVID-19 came as a surprise to the global economy and devastated many sectors worldwide, including the construction sector. Small construction firms are believed to be an engine of growth in many developing countries, including Ghana; thus, their survival cannot be trivialized. This study explored the impact of the COVID-19 on the businesses of the small confirms in Ghana.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative research approach was adopted for this study. Open-ended interview questions were distributed via email to 45 small construction firms (D3K3 and D4K4) purposefully selected. Thematic contents analysis was used to analyze 30 interview questions received.FindingsThis study has revealed that the COVID-19 has severely affected small construction firms in Ghana. Small construction firms are struggling in their finances; their cash flow/payments for work done are severely affected; they cannot secure contracts and management site efficiently. Their worker's productivity level has dwindled, which has subsequently escalated their project cost and completion time. These effects identified are significantly affecting the survival of these small construction firms.Research limitations/implicationsThe study included small construction operating in the Central, Western and Greater Accra regions of Ghana during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the findings may be applicable to construction sites outside these regions.Practical implicationsThe implication is the COVID-19 pandemic hugely impacts the small construction firm's business operations. Therefore, they must be mindful of the new norm (COVID-19) and institute strategies to help them overcome the challenges and sustain their businesses.Originality/valueThe study gives insight into the effects of the COVID-19 on the businesses of small construction firms in Ghana and proposes strategies that they must implement to overcome their challenges and sustain their businesses.

Purpose The new normal introduced by COVID-19 has ushered in new safety regulations that are required to be implemented by all organisations, including the construction industry. The implementation of the COVID-19 regulations, like any health and safety regulation, is not without hindrances. Consequently, this study aims to explore factors hindering the implementation of COVID-19 safety regulations at construction sites in Ghana. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a qualitative research method using an open-ended questionnaire as a data collection instrument. The set of questionnaires were distributed by means of purposive and snowball sampling methods. The collected data were analysed by means of the thematic analysis technique. Findings It became evident that several factors militate against implementing COVID-19 safety regulations at construction sites. Cost of implementing COVID-19 safety measures, lack of compliance and ignorance were identified as the most hindering factors, whereas superstition, lack of personal protective equipment supply and theft of COVID-19 materials were reported by fewer respondents. Research limitations/implications The set of questionnaires were limited to small construction firms who were operating on site within the Central, Western and Greater Accra regions of Ghana during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the findings may be applicable to firms outside these regions because most of the small construction firms in the country share similar characteristics. Practical implications The recommendations proffered could help construction organisations devise strategies to overcome the barriers that hamper the implementation of COVID-19 safety regulations on site. Moreover, the findings could inform policymakers on what is required to enforce compliance on site. Originality/value COVID 19 is still new, and as a result, the body of knowledge is at the infancy stage. This article contributes to advancing the body of knowledge in the area of COVID-19 implementation challenges on construction sites.

Purpose The novel COVID-19 pandemic has increased the risk in construction operations. New systems are, thus, required on construction sites to mitigate the risk and challenges associated with the pandemic. This paper aims to determine construction organisations risk control systems and the challenges of implementing safety measures on construction sites. Design/methodology/approach The study adopted a qualitative research method. A purposive sampling method was used to select study participants, who were administered open-ended questionnaires designed to gather qualitative data. The contents of the data were analysed, presented and reported based on the objectives of the study. Findings Some of the construction organisations conducted COVID-19 related risk assessments, whilst a few organisations did not conduct a risk assessment. Inspections to ensure COVID-19 compliance was done by government officials, health organisations and client’s health and safety officers. The construction organisations demonstrated considerable competence in record keeping and some organisations further evolved a follow-up plan for sick workers. The study found that some construction practitioners had misconceptions about the disease, used COVID-19 personal protective equipment incorrectly and lack adequate information about the virus. It is required that construction stakeholders evolve policies and strategies that would promote risk control and foster compliance to COVID-19 safety measures. Originality/value COVID-19 is still new, therefore, the body of knowledge is still at the infancy stage. This paper provided insight into the COVID-19 related risk and challenges that may increase the rate of virus infection amongst construction practitioners.

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