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Building Sustainably: A Pilot Study on the Project Manager’s Contribution in Delivering Sustainable Construction Projects—A Maltese and International Perspective

Author

Listed:
  • Ruth Borg

    (Department of Construction and Property Management, Faculty for the Built Environment, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta)

  • Rebecca Dalli Gonzi

    (Department of Construction and Property Management, Faculty for the Built Environment, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta)

  • Simon Paul Borg

    (Department of Environmental Design, Faculty for the Built Environment, University of Malta, MSD 2080 Msida, Malta)

Abstract

Despite ample technological advancements, the building industry is still seen as an unsustainable activity. To counteract this, building development is now being requested to be more sustainable. Due to the increasing complexity of sustainable projects’ criteria, the project manager’s role, tasked with the overall management of a building’s different development phases, is changing, becoming increasingly crucial for the attainment of pre-established sustainability goals. Based on this premise, the research presented in this paper is a pilot study set to preliminarily establish and identify a set of project management processes and supporting practices from existing literature, and gauge their significance and possible added value provided. This was done via a purposely designed questionnaire distributed locally, in Malta, and globally amongst established project managers. Notwithstanding the preliminary nature of the study some interesting results were obtained. Among the main outcomes of the study, it is observed how all respondents are very aware about sustainability issues and that their decision-making role places them in an optimum position to bring forward a sustainability agenda for a particular project. In terms of intervention, pre-construction (43%) and construction (28%) were considered to be the main stages were a project manager usually gives the highest input. However, various challenges were also highlighted by the respondents, including clients’ refusal to commit increased capital (34%), the requirement for further training (33%), and the lack of incentives aimed towards increasing the sustainability of projects (22%).

Suggested Citation

  • Ruth Borg & Rebecca Dalli Gonzi & Simon Paul Borg, 2020. "Building Sustainably: A Pilot Study on the Project Manager’s Contribution in Delivering Sustainable Construction Projects—A Maltese and International Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(23), pages 1-15, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:23:p:10162-:d:457424
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Danijela Toljaga-Nikolić & Marija Todorović & Marina Dobrota & Tijana Obradović & Vladimir Obradović, 2020. "Project Management and Sustainability: Playing Trick or Treat with the Planet," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(20), pages 1-20, October.
    2. Wei Wang & Shoujian Zhang & Yikun Su & Xinyang Deng, 2019. "An Empirical Analysis of the Factors Affecting the Adoption and Diffusion of GBTS in the Construction Market," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(6), pages 1-24, March.
    3. Christopher Vella & Simon Paul Borg & Daniel Micallef, 2020. "The Effect of Shank-Space on the Thermal Performance of Shallow Vertical U-Tube Ground Heat Exchangers," Energies, MDPI, vol. 13(3), pages 1-16, January.
    4. Albert Ping Chuen Chan & Amos Darko & Ernest Effah Ameyaw, 2017. "Strategies for Promoting Green Building Technologies Adoption in the Construction Industry—An International Study," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(6), pages 1-18, June.
    5. Stefano Armenia & Rosa Maria Dangelico & Fabio Nonino & Alessandro Pompei, 2019. "Sustainable Project Management: A Conceptualization-Oriented Review and a Framework Proposal for Future Studies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(9), pages 1-16, May.
    6. Radek Doskočil & Branislav Lacko, 2018. "Risk Management and Knowledge Management as Critical Success Factors of Sustainability Projects," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(5), pages 1-13, May.
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    Cited by:

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    2. Carmen Díaz-López & Andrés Navarro-Galera & Montserrat Zamorano & Dionisio Buendía-Carrillo, 2021. "Identifying Public Policies to Promote Sustainable Building: A Proposal for Governmental Drivers Based on Stakeholder Perceptions," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-21, July.
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