Contractors’ adaptability and growth in environmentally sustainable construction processes application

Abstract

The application of environmentally sustainable construction (ESC) processes is an essential construction industry activity for achieving the global goals of sustainable development. The capability of contractors for ESC application is primary to the construction industry’s ability to pursue sustainable development goals (SDGs). The objective of this paper is to describe the growth and adaptability level of contractors regarding the application of ESC processes. The resilience theory has been applied to provide theoretical underpinning to the dynamics of a contractor’s organizational adaptability and growth in ESC application. Qualitative data on the issues affecting contractor’s growth and adaptability have been obtained through a face-to-face semi-structured interview of built environment professionals in the Ghanaian construction industry. A thematic analysis of the data reveals that, besides other growth stages and adaptability levels, the exploitation stage of the adaptive cycle better describes the adaptability level of contractors involved in the study. The attributions of the growth levels emerging out of the analysis are established to provide basis for construing the improvement of contractors’ adaptability and growth in the application of ESC processes.