An assessment on the drivers and obstacles of sustainable project management in South Africa: A case study of Johannesburg

Abstract

The construction industry has been identified as the industry which carry out unsustainable practices, and processes, this has led to several countries seeking to incorporate sustainable practices such as sustainable construction, sustainable construction project management to handle the growing concern over climate and environmental issues. Despite the construction industry awareness of these sustainable practices, it has been a problem implementing these sustainable practices. The aim of this study is to identify the barriers that hinder the implementation of sustainable project management in the South African construction industry, as well as drivers that encourages the implementation of sustainable project management. A quantitative methodology approach was adopted for this study, a questionnaire was employed to gather data for this study. A total of fifty-two (52) respondents returned their questionnaires. Findings from this study reveal that a major barrier to implementation of sustainable project management is the perception that green buildings are expensive, lack of expertise and lack of training also obstacles of the implementation of sustainable project management. Findings on what drives organisations to invest in sustainable project management is the benefits that will be gained financially This study concluded with recommendations stating that an increased level of training and drumming interest in the clients so that when the construction professionals propose the use of sustainable project management, there is an understanding by the clients.

Sustainability Considerations of Green Buildings: A Detailed Overview on Current Advancements and Future Considerations

“…It has been further stated that whether the cost saving from building operation can cover the initial extra construction cost is still under investigation. The extra construction cost might result in cost overruns and a higher final price during the life cycle cost process [7,12,60,80,81]. A study reveals that the life cycle cost of green building projects in Indonesia is raised by 13.75% to obtain platinum certification [82].…”

“…The consumers and public are the main participants in green building development. Lack of awareness about green building and lack of public participation are two main obstacles in the socio-cultural aspect [12,68,72,80,88]. Some green and sustainable strategies are emerging to mitigate some of the negative impacts on the environment.…”

“…If there are regulatory gaps about the inappropriate information of green building, real estate developers and other market participants might adopt opportunistic behavior and avoid providing real green building projects [12]. There is no adequate understanding and awareness of sustainable development issues for contractors, clients, and other public organizations [80]. Moreover, the concept of sustainability is still relatively new for many developing countries, which causes the exploitation and utilization of sustainable buildings such as green buildings to fall short of the maximum social benefits [80,87].…”

“…There is no adequate understanding and awareness of sustainable development issues for contractors, clients, and other public organizations [80]. Moreover, the concept of sustainability is still relatively new for many developing countries, which causes the exploitation and utilization of sustainable buildings such as green buildings to fall short of the maximum social benefits [80,87]. Additionally, some stakeholders are reluctant to change due to an inadequate understanding of the concept of green building construction [68,88].…”

Impact of Tender Price Variability on Economic Sustainability of Construction Sector in Developing Countries

“…Economic and cost-related barriers prevent the effective adoption of sustainable construction (Zulu, et al, 2022;Durdyev, et al, 2018;Munyasya & Chileshe, 2018;Ohiomah, et al, 2019). These factors include a lack of government incentives, financial incentives, higher initial cost, etcetera.…”