Assessment of health and safety culture maturity in the construction industry in developing economies

2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (4) ◽  
pp. 865-881
Author(s):  
Justice Williams ◽  
Frank Fugar ◽  
Emmanuel Adinyira
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Safety Culture ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
The State ◽  
Actual State ◽  
State Of Health ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Companies

Purpose The degree to which accidents happen or are prevented in any organisation is the function of both the health and safety culture and the safety culture maturity level of the organisation. Therefore, this paper aims to determine the state of health and safety culture in the construction industry in developing economies and to assess their category on the safety maturity ladder using the Ghanaian construction industry as an example. This is to help construction companies in developing countries become conscious of the state of health and safety in the industry so they can be motivated to improve along the ladder. Design/methodology/approach In total, 250 contractors made up of 155 building contractor,s and 95 road contractors took part in the survey. The sample size was determined by Yamane’s (1967) formula with stratified simple random sampling technique adopted in selecting the companies in the survey. This paper also uses (Guttman Scale) Scalogram analysis to measure the state of health and safety culture in the Ghanaian construction industry. Findings The results show that health and safety culture of the Ghanaian construction industry is at the first level, the pathological stage. Even though Ghanaian contractors have health and safety policies and codes of conduct in place, safety is not seen as a key business risk. Consequently, management and most frontline staff do not emphasise the importance of integration of safety measures in the various activities on the site. Thus, safety is not seen as unavoidable and a part of the construction activity. Practical implications The findings of this study inform state authorities, consultants and contractors of areas that they need to focus more on improving health and safety culture in developing countries. This would go a long way in protecting construction workers in the industry. Originality/value This study, to the best of the authors’ current knowledge, is the first of its kind in the Ghanaian construction industry. The study brings to the fore the actual state of health and safety in the construction industry in developing countries such as Ghana. The value of the findings lies in the fact that it will provide the motivation for construction companies in developing countries to develop a commitment to safety, and to provide appropriate and effective safety improvement techniques to progress to the subsequent stages of the safety culture maturity ladder.

Characteristics of innovation orientations in construction companies

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (4) ◽  
pp. 436-455 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nor’Aini Yusof ◽  
Kong Seng Lai ◽  
Ernawati Mustafa Kamal
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Small Sample Size ◽  
Descriptive Analysis ◽  
Innovation Adoption ◽  
Small Sample ◽  
The State ◽  
Complex Nature ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Companies

Purpose An organisation’s performance tends to be associated with its innovativeness. However, innovation remains challenging in the construction industry, partially due to the complex nature of this industry. Nevertheless, innovation orientations (i.e. creation and adoption) shed new light on innovation in the construction industry. These orientations are similar but not entirely identical. Although most studies do not discuss these orientations in any detail, this study aims to classify the characteristics of the innovation orientations and determines the state of innovation among construction companies in Malaysia. Design/methodology/approach A survey questionnaire was mailed to 1,230 construction companies in Malaysia. Descriptive analysis was used to examine the respondents’ profiles, and factor analysis was used to classify the innovation orientation characteristics. A paired samples t-test was used to determine the state of innovation among the construction companies. Findings Innovation creation reflects a pioneer’s efforts and involves being a market explorer that tolerates risk and is research and development (R&D)-oriented, whereas innovation adoption involves being a creative imitator, a market follower and a safe player. Construction companies in Malaysia are innovation adoption–oriented. Research limitations/implications This study uses quantitative methods only; therefore, the findings are statistically oriented. The small sample size makes generalisation challenging, so this study reflects only the built environment of the developing country of Malaysia. Originality/value This study classifies the characteristics of innovation creation and innovation adoption with respect to the innovation orientation of construction companies in Malaysia.

scholarly journals ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS AS A DRIVER FOR SUSTAINABILITY: STATE OF IMPLEMENTATION, BENEFITS AND BARRIERS IN GERMAN CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES

2017 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 150-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan-Simon SCHMIDT ◽  
Rainard OSEBOLD
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Management ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Construction Materials ◽  
The State ◽  
Management Systems ◽  
Environmental Management Systems ◽  
Large Measure ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Ecologically Sustainable ◽  
Corporate Business

The construction industry, as one of almost every economy’s major generators of environmental impact, can contribute in large measure to achieving the goals of sustainability. However, most publications in this field deal with sustainability with reference to selecting construction materials and improvements in the operating phase of buildings. When considering ecological sustainability the focus has to be extended from the finished building to the building pro­cess. Therefore the actors of the construction sector who are responsible for the production process have to be studied: the construction companies. The goal of this paper is to study the state of ecologically sustainable corporate business management in construction. The state of application of elements of environmental management systems (EMS) is used as an indicator of the current situation in German construction companies. EMS can help continuously to environmen­tally improve the operating processes of the firms. A broad survey about the extent of EMS has been conducted consid­ering the barriers and drivers. In general, a relatively low interest in EMS and a lack of knowledge is noticeable within the sector. As a result, strategic recommendations are made on how to promote environmental management to foster sustainable thinking in the German construction industry.

scholarly journals Examining the implementation of ISO 9001 in Indonesian construction companies

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 94-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debby Willar ◽  
Vaughan Coffey ◽  
Bambang Trigunarsyah
Keyword(s):  
Quality Management ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Current Practice ◽  
Iso 9001 ◽  
Quality Management Systems ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Main Motive ◽  
Research Findings ◽  
Management Attitude

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the implementation of quality management systems (QMSs) of Grade 7 (G-7) Indonesian construction companies. This includes the initial motives that have driven the development of QMSs, barriers to effective QMS implementation, the current practice and integration of QMS-ISO 9001 principles and elements, and the performance of contractors implementing such QMSs. Design/methodology/approach – A survey was conducted involving 403 respondents (Quality Management Representatives, Managers, and Project and Site Engineers) from 77 G-7 as well as ISO 9001 certified Indonesian construction companies. Findings – The main motive for G-7 contractors in establishing and implementing ISO 9001 based QMSs are identified as being to effectively and efficiently control project activities. Respondents apparently do not often experience problems related to QMS implementation. However, issues of management attitude and purpose are identified as barriers that may affect effective QMS implementation. The study highlights the ISO 9001 principles and elements that still require to be more critically applied by G-7 contractors in order to fully implement and improve their current QMS effectiveness. The findings also suggest that, although certified, many G-7 contractors have not yet achieved a satisfactory level of performance to be truly competitive in global markets outside Indonesia. Originality/value – To date, only limited research has been conducted into the application of ISO 9001 in the Indonesian construction industry. The research findings reinforced the value of pursuing more effective QMS implementation. They also support current attempts to introduce ISO 9001 QMSs to a much wider base of Indonesian construction companies, particularly small and medium sized contractors and builders.

Operational process stages of brand alliances

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 389-408
Author(s):  
Chung-Ju Tsai ◽  
Tzong-Ru (Jiun-Shen) Lee ◽  
Szu-Wei Yen ◽  
Per Hilletofth
Keyword(s):  
Construction Industry ◽  
Brand Alliances ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Operational Process ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Reinforcing Bar ◽  
Brand Alliance ◽  
Interview Survey ◽  
Alliance Partners ◽  
Development And Management

Purpose – The purpose of this research is to investigate how companies in the reinforcing bar industry and the construction industry operate and implement brand alliances. Design/methodology/approach – This research uses a qualitative interview survey and the grounded theory method to extract key factors of brand alliance development and management in the targeted industries. The interview survey included six managers from different construction companies in Taiwan. Findings – This research identifies four common firm-level operational process stages (core categories) of brand alliances including different multidimensional factors, and proposes a conceptual model based on these identified core process stages. The four common core process stages include selection of brand alliance partners, communication with brand alliance partners, enforcement of brand alliances and assessment of brand alliances. Originality/value – The proposed model offers a tentative explanation of the development and management of brand alliances between the reinforcing bar industry and the construction industry. This study represents an initial research attempt in this field and explains how reinforcing bar and construction companies operate and implement brand alliances.

scholarly journals Design for safety in construction in Nigeria: a qualitative inquiry of the critical opportunities

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nnedinma Umeokafor ◽  
Chioma Okoro ◽  
Ikechukwu Diugwu ◽  
Tariq Umar
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Health And Safety ◽  
Qualitative Inquiry ◽  
Optimum Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Strategic Design ◽  
Design For Safety ◽  
Geographic Differences ◽  
Practical Implications

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the critical opportunities for design for safety (DFS), the potential statutory (and non-statutory) health and safety (H&S) responsibilities of designers including DFS and its workability in developing countries.Design/methodology/approachInterviews were conducted among 28 multi-designers including Architects, Civil Engineers and Builders and the data was analysed thematically.FindingsThe study revealed that the likelihood of designers, clients, etc. inclining to change because of the infancy stage of H&S in developing countries, making it “fallow” for H&S was a barrier. The opportunities for DFS include the willingness of designers to develop DFS skills and knowledge, which results in a welcoming attitude towards DFS. Further, the success recorded by professional bodies on other regulatory matters and designers' greater inclination to comply with DFS when professional bodies are involved in the regulatory process of DFS remain key opportunities for DFS.Practical implicationsFor statutory-backed DFS to achieve the objective at the optimum level, the role of professional bodies in the regulatory and sensitisation processes, geographic differences in DFS legislation enforcement, nuanced and strategic design and enforcement of any legislation that will support DFS should be taken into consideration.Social implicationsA grassroots collaborative approach to developing and implementing DFS in the country and the exploitation of the zeal of designers to have DFS-related knowledge, is recommended.Originality/valueTo the knowledge of the authors, this is the first study that examines the opportunities for DFS in developing countries when it is (or not) supported by statute and the need to advance the understanding of DFS in developing countries through qualitative enquiry.

Managerial role in organizational CSR: empirical lessons from Ghana

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 104-119 ◽  
Author(s):  
James Baba Abugre
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Empirical Literature ◽  
Work Behaviors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Managerial Role ◽  
Universal Approach ◽  
Corporate Social ◽  
Industry Sectors ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the managerial role in the practices of corporate social responsibility (CSR) in developing economies. Design/methodology/approach – The paper takes the form of an empirical analysis of employees' opinions based on a quantitative survey of 100 middle and senior level managers from four organisations chosen from relatively high impact industry sectors. Findings – Managerial role in the practice of CSR is limited and ineffective in Ghana. Difficulties of effective CSR implementation mainly stem from leadership weak spots in the form of mismanagement and corruption, lack of leadership commitment and unwillingness to allocate monies due for CSR activities. Organisations can do better in the practice of CSR if management's attitude to CSR, corruption, and work behaviors are positive. Practical implications – The paper provides valuable information on managerial activities with regards to organisational CSR, and how these can be improved. Originality/value – Empirical literature on CSR in developing countries is limited. This paper identifies the roles that management and organisational leadership can play in the practice of CSR in developing countries. The paper proposes a universal approach which aims to address the need for adequate and effective enforcement of CSR.

Developing a predictive model of construction industry-university research collaboration

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Monty Sutrisna ◽  
Dewi Tjia ◽  
Peng Wu
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Predictive Model ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Research Collaboration ◽  
Ann Model ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Construction Companies ◽  
Likelihood Model ◽  
Artificial Neural Network Ann

Purpose This paper aims to identify and examine the factors that influence construction industry-university (IU) collaboration and develop the likelihood model of a potential industry partner within the construction industry to collaborate with universities. Design/methodology/approach Mix method data collection including questionnaire survey and focus groups were used for data collection. The collected data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods to identify and examine factors. These findings were then used to develop the likelihood predictive model of IU collaboration. A well-known artificial neural network (ANN) model, was trained and cross-validated to develop the predictive model. Findings The study identified company size (number of employees and approximate annual turnover), the length of experience in the construction industry, previous IU collaboration, the importance of innovation and motivation of innovation for short term showed statistically significant influence on the likelihood of collaboration. The study also revealed there was an increase in interest amongst companies to engage the university in collaborative research. The ANN model successfully predicted the likelihood of a potential construction partner to collaborate with universities at the accuracy of 85.5%, which was considered as a reasonably good model. Originality/value The study investigated the nature of collaboration and the factors that can have an impact on the potential IU collaborations and based on that, introduced the implementation of machine learning approach to examine the likelihood of IU collaboration. While the developed model was derived from analysing data set from Western Australian construction industry, the methodology proposed here can be used as the basis of predictive developing models for construction industry elsewhere to help universities in assessing the likelihood for collaborating and partnering with the targeted construction companies.

Systems approach to cloud computing adoption in an emerging economy

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mahak Sharma ◽  
Ruchita Gupta ◽  
Padmanav Acharya ◽  
Karuna Jain
Keyword(s):  
Cloud Computing ◽  
Developing Countries ◽  
Systems Approach ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Developing Economies ◽  
Resistance To Change ◽  
Cloud Services ◽  
Financial Loss ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cloud Computing Adoption

PurposeCloud computing (CC) services have given a tremendous boost to the creation of efficient and effective solutions. With developing countries at a slow pace of adoption, this research aims to identify factors and their interrelationships influencing the adoption of CC in a developing country context. The developing countries are enjoying numerous benefits from CC services; however, its low adoption is still a question in developing economies; hence, the authors have selected the context of information and communication technology (ICT) firms in India.Design/methodology/approachThe qualitative research method is used where experts from thirteen ICT firms in India are interviewed.FindingsSixteen factors, twenty-eight subfactors, and 25 interrelationships are revealed through content analysis. Further, causal loop diagrams are proposed to display the behavior of cause and effect of these factors from a system's perspective. This will help to understand the relationships among the factors in order to enhance the speed of CC adoption. Possible financial loss and resistance to change are found as the key barriers to adoption. The proposed interrelationships can guide both policymakers and service providers for designing effective CC policies.Originality/valueThis is the first scholarly work that identifies interrelationships among factors and subfactors, thereby providing a holistic picture to decision-makers while making a choice on whether to adopt cloud services or continue with on premise data centers and servers.

Effects of financial management practices on technical performance of building contractors in northeast Nigeria

2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 201-223
Author(s):  
Abdulmalik Sa'eed ◽  
Nuru Gambo ◽  
Ibrahim Ibrahim Inuwa ◽  
Innocent Musonda
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Best Practices ◽  
Construction Industry ◽  
Financial Management ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Technical Performance ◽  
Practical Implications ◽  
Northeast Nigeria

Purpose The purpose of this study is to assess the effects of financial management practices of small-scale building contractors on the technical performance of the contractors in the northern part of Nigeria with international best practices. Previous studies argued that the technical performance of small-scale building contractors in developing countries is poor because of insufficient cash to acquire strategic resources at the outset of a project. This continues to pose a challenge to the sustainable development of the construction industry, particularly in developing countries like Nigeria. There is, therefore, a need to identify, assess and compare the effects of financial practices of the contractors with technical performance best practices. Design/methodology/approach The technical performance of each contractor was evaluated using a five-point Likert scale. This is used to obtain the mean technical performance levels of the contractors. A questionnaire survey was administered to the professionals in the industry who were selected by using a proportionate stratified random sampling technique. The contractors’ performance was compared using ANOVA with post hoc, and the effects of contractors’ financial management practices were determined using multiple regression analysis. Findings The results of this study indicated that the contractors in Nigeria were average technical performers and there were large effects of financial management practices on the technical performance of contractors in building projects. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to small-scale building contractors in northeast Nigeria. One of the implications of this study is that it provides the criteria for an evaluation of small-scale building contractors’ technical performance in Nigeria and other developing countries that faced similar problems. Practical implications The practical implications of this study are that it establishes the current level of contractors' technical performance and serves as an awareness of contractors' current financial practices. Social implications This study created bases for self-evaluation of contractors’ technical performance and competition among small-scale contractors in Nigeria for the enhancement of productivity particularly in rural areas for national development. Originality/value This study emanated from the government reports and past studies in the area of performance management based on the persistence of poor technical performance of small-scale contractors in the construction industry.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document