Abstract:
The term “responsible materials” refers to products that have been certified as
meeting sustainability standards. Thus, the ethical management of sustainability
challenges in the construction product supply chain is referred to as responsible
sourcing. It encourages the appropriate availability of measurements that increase
sustainability by assessing the environmental impact of materials in the
construction supply chain. Due to its health implications, environmental pollution
caused by material sourcing and usage has been a hot topic of investigation.
Construction specialists responsible for selecting materials with low environmental
footprints have a tough time doing so. In addition to the obstacles faced by
essential specialists in material selection, numerous aspects must be considered in
the sourcing and selection processes, such as comparing policies, to result in better
material usage beginning with the design phase. This research is aimed at assessing
the factors that influence material sourcing in the construction industry in which
sustainability is promoted. A survey of Ghanaian construction professionals
involved in the selection and procuring of construction materials was conducted.
The variables were evaluated based on the mean of their ratings. All of the variables
deemed to influence responsible sourcing of construction materials were subjected
to a principal component analysis (PCA). PCA found four components with
eigenvalues greater than one, accounting for 34.2 per cent of environmental
criteria, 12.10 per cent of resource consumption criteria, 8.4% of technological
criteria, and 6.9% of socio-economic criteria. As a result, all of the variables were
significant, confirming the conclusions of the literature. Despite being considered
an essential factor, eutrophication earned the lowest rating in the environmental
factor category; this is a cause for concern in ecosystem management. The study
contributes to the management of material sustainability in the Global South to
promote the required material sourcing and selection response from decisionmaking professionals.
