Upstill-Goddard, J; Glass, J; Dainty, A R J and Nicholson, I (2012) Integrating responsible sourcing in the construction supply chain. In: Smith, S D (ed.) Proceedings of 28th Annual ARCOM Conference, 3-5 September 2012, Edinburgh, UK.
Abstract
Certification to industry standards is the most tangible means for a company to prove its commitment to sustainability issues. The construction sector is of particular interest, due to the huge impacts of its operations. Many companies operating within the sector have implemented environmental management systems in line with ISO 14001 although recently the industry has become focused on the concept of responsible sourcing (RS); the ethical management of sustainability issues associated with products and materials in the construction supply chain. An adoption of this concept can be evidenced by certification to BES 6001, the framework standard for responsible sourcing. Despite this, the number of accreditations is relatively low and knowledge and awareness of RS is still limited. This review paper explores the reasons behind the under-emphasis of RS within the industry, despite a continually increasing knowledge of the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) agenda. Currently, opinion is divided on whether CSR and RS represent a form of corporate philanthropy or a channel by which revenue can be increased. The issue is further complicated by the presence of engineered-to-order (ETO) products, which creates barriers to the enactment of RS and CSR principles. These are explored and possible explanations for their absence from supply chain management issues offered. Furthermore, the potential to extend the interpretation and application of the ISO 14001 framework to demonstrate the consideration of these principles is presented. Other certification schemes of particular significance to the industry and the problems for companies to achieve certification are also discussed; in particular, access to financial and other resources are identified as a key barrier to certification, especially for SMEs. Recommendations are made for future research that might enable SMEs to achieve sustainability certification more readily and to help the industry embrace the concept of RS more broadly.
| Item Type: | Conference Paper (Paper) |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | corporate social responsibility; engineer-to-order; responsible sourcing; supply chain; sustainability certification |
| Index terms: | ISO, management issue, environmental management system, certification, commitment, responsible sourcing, revenue, engineer-to-order, presence, construction supply chain, corporate social responsibility, construction sector |
| Subjects: | industry analysis, administrative processes, health safety and environment, manufacturing engineering, management, environmental science, economic analysis, psychology, standards development, construction logistics, control systems |
| Topics: | Organizational Design, Contract Administration, Supply Chain Management, Quality Management, Sustainability, Engineering Principles, Research Practice, Health and Safety, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 3 PCT |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here