Sustainability: Opportunities and Challenges from a Construction Contractor's Perspective

Sustainability in the traditional delivery of the built environment is typically targeted towards the facility owners and designers. The contractor's input in such delivery models is limited to value engineering exercises during late design or early construction phases. Project delivery models that increase the contractor's stake in a project beyond the construction phase are increasingly becoming commonplace and present opportunities for contractors to play a bigger role in the sustainability of the built environment. This paper explores the challenges and opportunities for contractors in the traditional as well as ownership based delivery models. A review of the state of the practice in the Middle East region from the perspective of a multinational contracting firm is presented to highlight the sustainability impact of the contractor and the challenges contractors associate with sustainable construction.